If I've Been Enveloped in Tenderness
by Hwaet
Summary: The war against the Life Fibers is over, and humanity has lost. Ryuko and Satsuki must now endure their captors' perverse games. (I removed this story from FF a while back because I didn't think I'd ever finish it, but it seems like a waste to delete it. I'm going to be re-posting the story gradually, one chapter at a time, making some changes along the way.)
1. High and Mighty Color

**A/N: Hi all. I removed this story from FF a while back because I didn't think I'd ever finish it, but it seems like a waste to delete it. I'm going to be re-posting the story gradually, one chapter at a time, making some changes along the way. I'm still not sure whether I'll finish it, but I think I'll enjoy reworking it. Please let me know what you think! Enjoy! (WARNING: STORY CONTAINS HENTAI.)  
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Chapter 1 – High and Mighty Color

The war for Earth was over. COVERS enveloped 99.9 percent of the planet's inhabitants. From underground hideouts, the remainder fought a desperate but hopeless battle.

I, Satsuki Kiryuin, knew nothing of that battle. Nor would I have cared if I had known. Humanity had lost, and I knew it. All I could do was hang in my mother's dungeon, enduring her daily games, hoping against hope that she would kill me.

A door creaked open, throwing multicolored light across my naked body. Life Fibers took the place of shackles on my wrists and ankles. They held me in the air, my arms and legs forming a giant X.

There she stood in the doorway: the one I had spent my life preparing to destroy. The one person I hated more than anyone else in the world. My mother, Ragyo Kiryuin.

She smiled her usual cold smile as she stepped into the dungeon. A wave of her hand activated the lights and closed the door behind her.

"Good morning," she said.

I looked away. "Get on with it, you monster."

"Monster? Is that any way to speak to your mother?"

She stepped closer and pressed a cold hand against my right breast. "Despite your ingratitude, my maternal love is unchanged."

She put her mouth to my neck. A shudder ran through me as I felt her tongue on my skin. Her free hand pressed against my side, then slid downward, coming to rest on my thigh. I tensed, squeezing my eyes shut. I would not let her see me react. Thus I had vowed every day of my imprisonment. And every day I had broken that vow.

Her fingers moved to the cleft between my legs, gently caressing. In my mind, I cursed myself as I felt moisture build. Her middle finger slid easily into my lubricated slit.

"Do you feel it?" she whispered in my ear. "Do you feel my love?"

She began moving her long, slender finger in and out of me. My hips bucked against my will. This shouldn't have felt good. I should have hated this. And I did. But somehow her touch awoke unspeakable sensations. The Life Fibers permeating her body had given her not only superhuman strength but also a superhuman ability to draw pleasure from my body.

She ran her tongue down my neck, over my collarbone. She began to lick and suck my breasts, still working her finger in and out of my womanhood. I clamped my lips shut, trying in vain to muffle my whimpers.

Suddenly she pulled her finger from my dripping slit. She lifted the finger to her mouth and sucked.

"Delicious," she said. "Let me taste more of my beloved daughter's nectar."

She knelt in front of me. I tried to close my legs, but the Life Fibers held my ankles fast. She placed her lips around my clitoris, sucking it into her mouth. I gasped. Clenching my teeth, I struggled against the pleasure building in my groin. Finally I gave in, letting my hips buck freely against her face.

I couldn't hold it back anymore. Despite my vow, despite my best efforts, I was coming...

For a moment, all my struggles fell away. Pure white pleasure enveloped my body. Then I was back in the dungeon, hanging limply from my Life Fiber shackles. As I regained my breath, I heard my mother speak.

"Do you understand now, my dear, how much I love you?"

I opened my eyes, fixing her with a look of pure hatred.

"Kill me," I snarled. "Kill me, or I swear, Ragyo Kiryuin, that I will kill you!"

My mother smirked. She turned and walked from the dungeon, turning off the lights as she left. I squeezed my eyes shut and lowered my face, letting the darkness hide my tears.


	2. Happy Wake Up!

Chapter 2 – Happy Wake Up!

"Wakey, wakey, Ryuko-chan," chirped Nui's sweet voice.

My eyelids creaked open. I was in one of the chambers in the Kiryuin mansion. Ragyo Kiryuin had given it to Nui Harime as her playroom. Pink walls surrounded a square of white carpet. There was a big window overlooking a courtyard.

Mako lay next to me on the carpet, using my naked chest as a pillow. Nui's greeting had woken her too. She sat up, blinking and rubbing drool from the corner of her mouth.

Nui stood in front of us, wearing her frilly pink dress and her saccharine smile. With a quick, dainty movement, she pulled down her panties and stepped out of them. She lifted the hem of her dress.

"Come on, Ryuko-chan. Make me feel good."

"Come near me, bitch, and I'll bite your clit off."

"Now, now, Ryuko-chan, don't be like that!"

Nui vanished in a flash, reappearing behind Mako. Mako turned bright red as Nui's hand cupped her breast.

"Hey! W-what are you—" Mako sputtered.

"Oh well," Nui sighed. "If Ryuko-chan won't make me feel good, I guess I'll have to play with Mako-chan instead."

"No, stop!" Mako cried as Nui's other hand reached between her legs. "Don't touch me there!"

"Stop it!" I shouted.

Nui looked up at me. "Oh? Did you change your mind, Ryuko-chan? Do you want to make me feel good?"

I clenched my teeth, then spat out the word. "Yes."

"I knew you'd come around, Ryuko-chan!" Nui said, releasing Mako.

"Ryuko-chan, wait!" Mako called. "You don't have to—"

"It's okay, Mako."

I extended my tongue and gave Nui's crotch a hesitant lick.

"Come on, Ryuko-chan! You can do better than that!"

Struggling against my revulsion, I started licking in earnest. I tried to imagine how I would like it done to me.

"Are you even trying down there? Don't you know anything about eating pussy?"

"How the hell should I?!" I snapped.

Nui lifted a hand to her mouth. "Oh, Ryuko-chan! Don't tell me this is your first time!" She giggled. "That's so adorable!" She put her hands to her cheeks, her eyes widening in mock concern. "Oh no! I've been so selfish! Here I am, asking you to make me feel good, and you haven't even done it before."

Nui walked around my body and knelt behind me. Her tiny hands gripped my ass. "Don't worry, Ryuko-chan. I'll teach you."

Without further ado, she buried her face between my legs. First she kissed and nuzzled my inner thighs. Then she moved to my clit, gently licking and sucking. I gasped at the sensation and clenched my teeth, trying to block it out. How was she doing this? I had masturbated before, but it had never felt even remotely like this. I struggled to hold back the whimpers that were escaping from my mouth.

Nui paused for a moment. "You like it, don't you?"

"I don't fucking like it!"

"Now, now. Lying is bad, Ryuko-chan. The Life Fibers in your body resonate with the ones in mine. I can use them to stimulate the nerves in your clit all I want."

I heard a rustle as Nui rose to her feet behind me. Then, all of a sudden, I was spinning through the air. My back slammed against the floor, winding me. Nui had flipped me over.

She knelt again and put her hands on my knees, then ran them up my legs. They continued past my groin, caressing my pubes and lower stomach. Then they descended again, pulling my labia apart. I felt something hot and wet penetrate my slit.

"Ah!" I cried. I looked down at Nui. She had her head between my legs and was shoving her tongue into me. "H-hey, what are you—"

Nui pulled her tongue out and put her lips around my clit.

"Ahhh!" I cried. My hips bucked against her face.

"Don't lie. I know you like it."

"I d-don't like it!"

"Hmm, how strange, Ryuko-chan. Your mouth says no, but your hips say yes." She sucked my clit into her mouth again, then released it, her breath hot against my folds. I felt my hips thrust again. "I think your hips are more honest."

She shoved a finger into my wetness, pumping it in and out. I cried out, tossing my head from side to side. Every thrust of her finger scraped shards of pleasure from my walls. She saw me screw my eyes shut and giggled. Her finger started moving faster and faster.

"N-no, w-wait!" I cried. "If you do it that much, I'll—"

I clamped my mouth shut, but the words were already out. She giggled again.

"Are you about to cum, Ryuko-chan?" she whispered as she fingered me. "Are you about to cum all over the hand that killed your father?"

"No, damn you!"

Nui circled my nipple with her tongue. She kissed her way down my body, eventually reaching the spot where her finger plowed in and out. Her tongue resumed its work on my clit.

"Come on, Ryuko-chan," she whispered. "Cum on my finger."

Her filthy words pushed me over the edge. I came, harder than I'd ever cum before. She kept sucking my clit, drawing my orgasm out longer and longer.

As my spasms finally subsided, Nui rose to her feet over my panting body. She put a dainty hand to her cheek.

"Oh dear. What a slut you are, getting off on the hand that killed your father. What would he say if he saw you like this?"

I shuddered at the cruel glee in her remaining eye. To my horror, I felt myself becoming aroused again. An ache was building in my groin—controlled, no doubt, by Nui via my Life Fibers.

"Well, I was planning to make you cum more than once. But since you don't want to play with me, I guess I'll leave now."

Nui turned and started toward the door.

"... No," I whispered. "Wait."

She halted and looked over her shoulder. "What did you say, Ryuko-chan? You don't want me to leave?"

I squeezed my eyes shut and gritted my teeth. A war was raging inside me: on one side, every last shred of conscience and shame and self-respect; on the other, the horrible new desire she had awoken in me.

"Tell me what you want, Ryuko-chan, or I'm leaving."

"... Please ... don't ..."

Smiling, Nui tilted her head to the side in mock puzzlement. "Don't what?"

"Don't ... stop."

"You want me to keep going?"

"Yes."

"You want me to keep fucking you with the fingers that crushed the life from your father's body?" she asked sweetly. "Is that what you want?"

"...Yes."

"Then say what you want. Say, 'I am a slut. Please fuck me with the fingers that crushed the life from my father's body.'"

I clenched my teeth and turned my face to the side, sobbing.

"I'll give you ten seconds. Say it, or I'll have to call it quits for today. Ten...nine...eight..."

"I am a slut," I murmured. "Please fuck me with the fingers that crushed the life from my father's body."

"Sorry, Ryuko-chan, I couldn't hear you. Four...three..."

"I am a slut! Please fuck me with the fingers that crushed the life from my father's body!"

"Good girl. Now say, 'I don't give a fuck about my father. I'll piss all over his memory if it means I get my clit sucked.'"

Tears streaming down my face, I cried out, "I don't give a fuck about my father! I'll piss all over his memory if it means I get my clit sucked!"

Nui giggled. She climbed on top of me, pressing her knee against my slit. Her hand brushed my hair from my face as she whispered in my ear.

"I'll do what you want today, Ryuko-chan. But never forget: this isn't sex. This is masturbation. You're nothing but a toy for me to use to pleasure myself. Do you understand?"

"Yes," I whispered, surrendering myself to her hands.


	3. Waltz for Goddess

Chapter 3 – Waltz for Goddess

Ragyo Kiryuin stood before me in her newest dress. The full-length mirror behind her reflected her exposed back, while the dress's super-low neckline showed off her luscious cleavage. I tried not to stare as I gave my report.

"How is our progress in the western hemisphere?" she asked.

"No detectable resistance remains in North America," I replied, looking down at my clipboard. "The remnant of a South American Nudist Beach copycat organization continues to elude our forces in the j-jungles of ... the j-jungles ... o-of ..."

I squeezed my eyes shut, doubling over. My knuckles had turned white from gripping my clipboard.

"Is there a problem?" Ragyo asked.

"I'm sorry, ma'am. I ... I can't ..."

I fell silent, struggling to regain control. The room was silent aside from the faint buzzing noise emanating from my crotch.

"Go ahead and keep talking," Ragyo said, as if she hadn't heard me. I heard her dress fall to the floor in a rustle of white fabric. "I'm just going to change into something more comfortable."

Against my better judgment, I opened my eyes. Naked except for white lace panties, Ragyo walked toward me, her firm melons bouncing with each step.

I gasped, my knees threatening to buckle. My clipboard clattered to the floor.

Halfway between me and the mirror, Ragyo changed course. She turned toward a closet that lay behind me and to my right. Over the buzzing, I heard coat hangers sliding along a rail, then silence.

Ragyo passed me again, still undressed. Her ass came into view, firm cheeks rubbing against each other as she walked. She stopped in front of the mirror. I could see her toned stomach and perfect breasts reflected in the silvered glass.

She placed a hand on her stomach and rubbed it in a slow circle, her fingers briefly dipping beneath the waistband of her panties. She hefted her breasts in her hands, as if checking their weight, then released them with a heavy bounce.

"Fuck," I whispered.

Still the buzzing continued.

Ragyo turned her head slightly and looked at me out of the corner of her eye.

"On second thought, my nipples have been feeling awfully sensitive lately. Maybe some cool air will do them some good."

She turned and walked toward me, stopping just inches from where I stood.

"Are you well, Hoomaru?" she asked. "You look uncomfortable."

"Please ... Ragyo-sama ... turn it off ... I can't take anymore ..."

Smirking, she reached for my crotch. Her fingers pressed against the fat vibrator that had been lodged inside me all day. I gasped and grabbed her wrist with both hands.

"... Ragyo-sama ... please ..." I whined. "... Ragyo-sama ..."

Ignoring my plight, she walked over to a sumptuous white chair and sat down facing me. She spread her legs.

"Eat me."

Desperate to end the torture, I staggered toward my mistress. When I was only halfway there, she held up the vibrator's remote controller. Her finger diddled the controller's nub-shaped switch suggestively, then flicked it to the highest setting.

I doubled over, crying out, then fell to my knees. I leaned forward until my forehead touched the carpet. Unable to speak, I lifted my face from the floor and looked at her with pleading eyes.

Her face hardened. "Did you hear me, Hoomaru? I gave you an order."

Whimpering and sobbing, I dragged myself across the floor. At last I reached Ragyo's spread legs and climbed to my knees. I lifted a quivering hand to her crotch and pulled the lace aside, then started to lick her glistening slit.

She grabbed a handful of my hair, holding my head in place. "You enjoy eating me, don't you, Hoomaru?"

"Y-yes, ma'am."

She gave my hair a tug, lifting my head slightly. "Suck my clit."

I obediently put my lips around her clit. I sucked for a moment, then started flicking the nub with my tongue. Meanwhile, I had slipped a finger inside her pussy and was working it in and out. Growing bolder, I let my teeth graze her clit. She responded with a hiss of pleasure and a vicious twist to my hair.

"I'm ... about to cum ... Hoomaru," she gasped. "Don't ... stop ..."

Encouraged by the Director's words, I attacked her clit with renewed vigor. She exploded, gripping my hair painfully. I continued to lick and suck until she pushed my head away.

She quickly collected herself and sat back in the chair, placing her hands on its armrests.

"It's been over a week since we last played like this," she said. "Have you missed our games?"

"Ragyo-sama, please!" I screamed, clutching my groin where the vibrator still buzzed. "I can't take this anymore!"

"Answer my question. Did you miss our games this week?"

"Yes, ma'am."

"What did you do about it? Did you masturbate?"

"Yes, I masturbated."

Ragyo slipped her right hand into her cum-soaked panties.

"How often?"

"E-every morning and evening," I stammered, watching her hand move under the lacy fabric.

"How did you do it?"

"Please, Ragyo-sama! Don't torture me like this!"

"Answer my question, Hoomaru, or that vibrator stays inside you for another whole day."

"I ... I humped my hand. I always masturbate by humping my hand in bed."

"Really? And what do you think about while you do it?"

"I only think about you, Ragyo-sama!"

"What parts of me?"

"Parts?"

"What parts of my body do you think about when you masturbate? My face?"

"No. Not really."

"What parts, then? Tell me."

Her hand was moving faster now in her panties. Her other hand started fondling her left breast, making her whole chest jerk and bounce.

"W-well, I think about your breasts."

"You like my breasts? What about them?"

"H-how big they are," I whimpered, "and how they're so f-firm and perfect even after you've nursed two children."

"Ah, you like the size and firmness of my breasts. What else?"

"Y-your ass," I squeaked, my eyes glued to her bouncing globes. "I love your firm ass."

"So, you're telling me you masturbate to my ass? You lie on your bed and hump your hand while thinking about my breasts and my ass? Is that it, Hoomaru?"

My orgasm hit me like a tidal wave. Ragyo's filthy words, her hand in her panties, her huge breasts and rock-hard nipples, the delicious cruelty in her smile—all of them combined to push me over the edge.

"Oh! Ragyo-sama!" I cried, cumming on the vibrator again. I came for at least half a minute, whimpering and writhing in front of her.

I fell onto my back, gasping for breath. Slowly the buzzing diminished. Finally it stopped altogether. Ragyo rose from her chair, knelt, and pulled down my drenched shorts. She ran her hands briefly over my thighs, then pulled the vibrator from my sopping tunnel.

She stood up. "Keep me updated on the situation in South America. I want a full report tomorrow."

"Yes, ma'am," I murmured.

I heard a door creak open and then click shut. Alone now in the room, I opened my eyes and stared at the white ceiling. A blissful smile slowly stretched across my face.

"Ragyo-sama," I whispered, "I love you."


	4. Light on the Cheek of Night

Nui's dress rustled as she rose to her feet.

"I had fun today, Ryuko-chan. See you tomorrow!"

The door to the playroom opened and closed. Slowly I opened my eyes and stared up at the ceiling.

It was evening. The playroom and the courtyard outside were dark. Nui had spent a whole day playing with me. The carpet beneath me was drenched with my juices.

Hot tears filled my eyes. What had I done? I had let my father's murderer fuck me, and I had _enjoyed_ it. In fact, I had _begged_ for it, over and over, while she laughed. At her command, I had said awful things about my father. I had betrayed him completely.

With my last ounce of strength, I drew my knees up and curled into a ball, sobbing.

Something pressed against my back. For a horrible moment, I tensed, thinking it was Nui again. Then I heard Mako's voice.

"Ryuko-chan..."

Mako wrapped her arms around my shoulders, pressing her cheek against the back of my head.

I cried for a long time. Mako didn't say any more. She just knelt behind me, holding me while sobs wracked my body.

At last my sobs died down. I didn't even have strength left for crying. Mako didn't move or speak. She stayed where she was, holding onto me in silence.

I opened my eyes and lifted my head. It was the middle of the night now, but the darkness wasn't quite as thick anymore. The clouds had broken slightly, enough to reveal the moon. Frail silver light streamed through the window, washing over us as Mako held me.

I turned to face Mako and lifted a hand to her cheek.

"Mako..."

Mako had endured her own share of suffering. She had seen her family killed in front of her along with Nudist Beach operatives. Her little brother had been the last one to die—partly because Ragyo Kiryuin had wanted him to watch his parents' death, partly because she had wanted to play with his undeveloped body before she killed him.

Despite all she had already suffered, Mako had been willing to take my place in Nui's games. All day long, she had begged Nui to let me go and use her instead. I didn't deserve a friend like her.

"I won't let them hurt you, Mako," I whispered. "No matter what, I swear I'll keep you safe."

We hugged each other tightly. I don't know how long we stayed like that. At last we fell asleep, still clinging to each other like castaways to a life-vest.

* * *

After leaving Ryuko and Mako, I went to the mansion's security room and turned on the monitor connected to my playroom. I was hoping to see some friend-on-friend comfort sex, but all I got were tears and girly hugs. I watched Mako hug Ryuko while Ryuko cried. I watched Ryuko turn and hug Mako back.

It was strange, I thought, how much humans depended on each other. I had always relied on my Life Fibers for my strength. But Ryuko and Mako seemed to draw their strength from each other more than anything else.

"Ryuko-chan, you need Mako-chan so much, don't you?" I said, eyeing the monitor. "You're like a Life Fiber garment, and she's like the Banshi. What would happen if I cut that Banshi, Ryuko-chan? I wonder."


	5. Kiss Me Goodbye

Chapter 5 – Kiss Me Goodbye

Morning had come again. I stood in the middle of Nui's playroom, wrists held high above my head by Life Fibers. Nui, whose clothes lay in a pile near the door, stood behind me and fondled my breasts.

"Your breasts are so big and well-shaped. I wish I had breasts like yours, big sister."

"I'm not your fucking sister!"

"Oh, but you are, Ryuko-chan. We're both children of Ragyo-sama and the Life Fibers, even if your Life Fibers were added after your birth."

She cupped my breasts with both hands, resting her chin on my shoulder.

"I bet they're really sensitive. You're probably getting turned on just from having your breasts touched like this."

"I'm n-not turned on."

"You say that, but your nipples are so hard. They're poking against my palms. I wonder why that is."

Nui moved one of her hands to my groin. She rubbed my slit for a moment, then shoved a finger inside. After a few moments of fingering, she lifted her glistening hand in front of my face.

"Look at all these perverted juices. And you still say you aren't turned on?"

She walked in front of me and knelt down. Grabbing my ass in both hands, she shoved her face between my thighs. I gasped, my wrists twisting in their Life Fiber restraints.

She paused, looking up at me. "Does it feel good, Ryuko-chan? I know how much you love it when I suck your clit."

Before I could reply, she resumed her assault on my genitals. Against my will, I thrust my hips forward, straining for more contact. At last, with a shuddering cry, I came into her mouth. She gripped my hips, continuing to lick and suck until I was spent.

As I hung limply from the Life Fibers, she licked my crotch and thighs clean of my juices. Then she stepped back and snapped her fingers. The Life Fibers released my wrists. Unprepared, I fell onto my back, my head slamming against the carpeted floor. She put her knees on either side of my head and lowered her crotch onto my face.

"Come on, Ryuko-chan. It's my turn to feel good."

Determined to get this over with as quickly as possible, I set to work with my tongue. She ground against my face, moaning faintly. To my shame, I started to feel aroused again. A steady trickle stained the carpet under my ass as Nui moaned and bucked on my face. Guiltily, I slipped a hand between my legs.

"Look at you," she panted, "fingering yourself while your little sister fucks your face. You're such a slut, Ryuko-chan." She squealed in pleasure as my tongue flicked over her clit. "Mmmmmm, that's it, Ryuko-chan! Keep going!"

She moaned louder, grinding her hips. Her movements grew steadily more frantic until she arched her back and cried out, covering my face with her juices.

After a moment's rest, she leapt to her feet. I rolled onto my side, coughing and gasping for breath.

Nui crouched in front of me. "Spread your legs, Ryuko-chan. I'll make you feel real good!"

I wanted to kick her in the face, but I didn't dare. Out of the corner of my eye, I looked at Mako, who was sitting in a corner with her face in her hands. Nui obviously thought I was a more interesting toy than Mako. But if I displeased Nui, she might decide to take it out on Mako. I couldn't let that happen.

Dutifully, I spread my legs. Nui knelt and ran her hands up my thighs. She slipped a finger inside me, making me gasp.

"Do you like my finger, Ryuko-chan? Or is it not big enough for a nasty slut like you?"

I was getting wetter and wetter as she worked. I clenched my teeth, telling myself it was just the effect of her Life Fiber resonance.

"Just listen to all those lewd noises," she said. "Your pussy's so wet, it's making all sorts of nasty squishing sounds."

Suddenly she pulled her hand away. The pleasure in my groin stopped growing and started to fade.

"No, don't sto—" I began, then froze, eyes widening.

Nui giggled.

"What was that, Ryuko-chan? You don't want me to stop?"

"N-no, that's not what I—"

"Oh, Ryuko-chan! I'm so glad you're finally being honest with yourself! As a reward..."

Nui snapped her fingers. A strand of Life Fiber descended through the air. It lightly brushed my nipples, then moved lower. I gasped as I felt it probe my folds. It found and encircled my clit, sending shock waves of pleasure through my body. I cried out, hurtling toward orgasm.

But I didn't cum. My body tensed, but no release came.

"What's wrong, Ryuko-chan? Can't cum?" Nui giggled, watching me squirm on the floor. "I told you I can manipulate your nerves using Life Fibers. I can decide when you cum and when you don't."

The ache in my groin was becoming unbearable. I had never felt pleasure like this. Not from my own fingers. Not from Nui's games. Not even when Ragyo and Nui had trapped me in Junketsu. It was more pleasure than I'd ever felt before—but it was nothing but agony if I couldn't cum. I screamed in frustration, fingering myself with one hand and rubbing my clit with the other. It was no use.

"Please," I gasped. "L-let me cum."

"Come on, big sister! You can beg better than that!"

More Life Fibers descended, joining the first one around my clit. They began to vibrate rapidly, letting out a high, thin whine. I writhed on the floor, clawing at the shimmering strands.

"Please, Harime!" I shrieked. "Let me cum!"

Nui put a finger to her cheek as if in thought. "You really want to cum that badly? Okay, but only on one condition."

"What is it?! Just tell me!"

Nui smiled. "Kill Mako-chan."

I heard her reply only faintly, through a haze of tormented lust.

"W-what...?"

"You heard me," she said, her voice as sweet as ever. "Kill Mako-chan and I'll let you cum."

By this point, I hardly remembered who Mako was. I hardly remembered where I was or what was happening. My universe had contracted to a tiny nub of flesh above my vagina.

 _I have to cum!_

The agony in my groin subsided slightly—just enough to give me the use of my limbs. I staggered to my feet and turned to the short girl huddled in the corner. She stared back, wide-eyed.

"Ryuko ... chan?"

Mako started to rise, but she was no match for my agility. I pinned her against the wall, pressing both hands against her throat.

Kill ... I had to kill her ... or Nui wouldn't let me cum...

I dimly heard Mako choking as she grabbed my wrists. A part of my mind screamed at me to stop, but I didn't listen. I couldn't listen. Not until I'd gotten release. Mako's fists beat at my chest, but I didn't feel the blows. Her struggles grew weaker and weaker. Finally they ceased.

"Good girl, Ryuko-chan! Now, as promised..."

The Life Fibers around my clit started vibrating again in earnest. The long-awaited orgasm came thundering back, and this time it didn't stop short.

Wave after wave of pleasure rocked my body. I fell to the floor, spasming. I couldn't stop cumming.

And then I did. I lay on the floor, panting, as the fragments of my mind floated back together. My eyes flickered open. I stared at Mako's motionless body, slowly realizing what I had done.

"Mako!" I screamed. "Mako, answer me! Mako!"

Nui giggled. "Why are you shouting at her, silly big sister? She's dead. You killed her, remember?"

I threw myself to the floor, screaming in horror. I tore my hair and clawed at my face.

"I'll never forgive you!" I screamed. "I'll never forgive you for what you made me do!"

"I didn't make you do anything, Ryuko-chan. This isn't like Ragyo-sama's Mind Stitching or the time Junketsu rewired your brain. I just gave you a choice between cumming and letting Mako-chan live, and you chose to cum—just as I expected from my nasty big sister."

At a gesture from Nui, a bundle of Life Fibers wrapped around Mako's body. A rectangular panel slid open in the wall, and the Life Fibers tossed Mako through. The panel slid shut again.

"You've taken everything from me!" I screamed, turning back to Nui. "Just kill me already! KILL ME!"

Smiling calmly, Nui snapped her fingers. Life Fibers wound around my wrists again, lifting me into the air. Additional Life Fibers grabbed my ankles. I shrieked and twisted, but they held fast.

"I'll leave you like this for a while, okay, Ryuko-chan? I can't have my cute toy hurting herself. See you tomorrow!"

Turning her back on my curses, she skipped from the room, scooping up her clothes on the way **.**


	6. Pride of Glory

Chapter 6 - Pride of Glory

"Ready for your bath, Satsuki?" my mother said, stepping into the dungeon with a plastic bucket.

I still hung in the middle of the room, my limbs stretched into a giant X. Ragyo walked behind me and set the bucket down. I felt her hand run down my back, briefly lingering on my buttocks.

"There's so much sweat on your body. You must have gotten hot during my visit this morning. But then, you get hot during all my visits, don't you?"

I heard her lift a sponge from the bucket and squeeze it out. She sponged my shoulder for a few moments, then worked her way lower. She lavished particular attention on my buttocks, rubbing each cheek in circles and running the sponge repeatedly through the crack of my ass.

"Your figure is quite impressive," she said, dunking the sponge in the bucket. "Most humans would have started atrophying by now, but your legs and ass are still as shapely as when you first arrived here."

She wrung the sponge out and placed it against the small of my back. Water droplets ran down my thighs as she slowly slid the sponge between my cheeks. She reached the bottom of my ass and kept going, slipping the sponge between my spread legs.

"I suppose I should expect no less from one of my daughters. It's a pity you didn't inherit my strength along with my figure."

"Keep lying to yourself."

"Lying?"

I felt her apply more pressure to the sponge as it violated my crotch.

"I've never lied to you, and I'm hardly lying now. You are, by far, the weakest of my daughters. You should be grateful that I spared the life of a weakling like you."

She carried the bucket in front of me and set it down.

"You say that," I replied, "but you keep me strung up like this all day and night, even when you're playing your sick games. Why would you do that unless you feared me?"

She threw her head back and laughed. "I? Fear you?"

She started washing the front of my body, missing no opportunity to touch my breasts and nipples.

"I, who have achieved the fullness of divinity, afraid of a girl who can't even draw out the full power of her Kamui? What foolishness."

"You're the foolish one. You call yourself divine when you're nothing but the Life Fibers' slave. What do you think will happen to you when Life Fibers blanket the Earth's surface?"

"You're talking about the destruction of the Earth? I'm afraid you've been out of the loop, my dear. Plans have changed."

I opened my eyes. "What?"

"It's true," she said. "I once thought the Life Fibers were the most sublime beings on this planet and that my efforts to facilitate their reproduction brought me as close as I would ever come to divinity. But I now realize that was a mistake. Were I to let the Life Fibers complete their normal life cycle, the universe would be deprived of its greatest achievement."

"And what would that be?"

"Me. The Life Fibers are powerful, yes, and they have a pitiless will to survive that places them high above the human species. But their thought process is rudimentary at best, more instinct than reason. Humans, though inferior to Life Fibers in countless ways, possess a power for calculation that Life Fibers lack."

She tilted back her head and threw open her arms.

"But I, I combine in myself both natures: the power and sublimity of the Life Fibers and the intelligence of man. I, Ragyo Kiryuin, am the true pinnacle of creation!"

"You're insane."

Ignoring my remark, she returned her gaze to my body. She leaned forward, cupping my crotch and slipping a finger inside. She grinned as I struggled not to move or make a sound.

"The Life Fibers obey my will. Through them, I will rule this planet until I have put all things under my feet. And by their power, I will live forever."

Her finger was moving faster now. Despite my efforts, muffled whimpers had started to escape from my throat.

"Don't be afraid. You too will share in my glorification. I will give immortality to all my beloved daughters. Some, such as Nui, will enjoy everlasting blessedness. But those who harden their hearts against me"—she thrust a second finger inside me, making me gasp—"will taste everlasting punishment at my hands." She smiled. "Doesn't that sound wonderful?"

"An eternity with you? I'd rather die."

"Are you sure about that, my dear? You seemed to be babbling something quite different during one of my visits a few days ago. If I recall correctly, I had your clit in my mouth at the time."

I looked away, my cheeks burning with shame. There was no retort I could make.

"Come, daughter," she said, curling her fingers inside me, "don't you yearn to spend eternity in my motherly embrace?"

Just as I was about to cry out, the wail of a siren filled the air. A red light started flashing. My mother glanced up in mild irritation. She pulled a black communication device from the folds of her dress and held it to her ear.

"Hoomaru, what's going on?"

"Intruders, ma'am," Hoomaru replied, a hint of fear in her voice. "Members of a Japanese resistance movement we weren't aware of. Our security systems failed to detect this particular contingent until it was within a few yards of the mansion."

My mother's eyes narrowed.

"Hoomaru, I will have to ... speak with you about this oversight later. For now, meet me in the security room."

"Y-yes, ma'am," Hoomaru stammered.

My mother looked at me. "Goodbye for now. We will continue your bath after I've dealt with these vermin."

The dungeon door slid open. She stopped at the doorway and glanced back, lifting her fingers to her mouth, then strode out into the hall.


	7. Starless Night

_Nui's POV:_

Morning sunlight streamed through the window, rousing me from my sleep. Opening my eye, I saw Ragyo lying on top of the bedcovers next to me. I was snuggled up against her, my face nestled against her neck. We were both naked, as usual.

We'd had a busy night. The first half of the night had been spent slaughtering the rebel group that had attacked the mansion. We'd spent the second half the way we spent every night. My pussy was aching for more. I crawled on top of Ragyo so my face was over her cunt, then bent down and started to eat her out.

I felt a hand grip my ass.

"Good morning, Nui."

"Morning, Ragyo-sama."

I felt her clit hardening in my mouth. That turned me on so much. I slipped a hand between my legs and started playing with myself.

"You like my body, don't you, Nui?"

"Yes, Ragyo-sama," I moaned around her clit, "I love your lewd body and your dirty boobs."

I felt her grip on my ass tighten.

"You're calling my breasts dirty?"

"But they are, Ragyo-sama! They're so huge, with such big, lewd areolas. I'm rubbing my clit to them right now."

She lifted her hand and brought it down against my ass with a loud smack. I whimpered in pleasure.

"What a naughty girl you are, Nui. Is that what you usually think about when you masturbate? Your mother's breasts?"

The hand on my ass moved lower. As Ragyo's fingers probed my folds, I clamped my mouth down on her pussy, still rubbing myself with my hand. She stiffened, arching off the bed as she came. I cried out moments later, cumming all over her hand and face.

Ragyo was the first to recover. She rolled me onto my back and climbed on top of me. I felt her wet pubic hairs on my crotch. Her breasts were like a pair of huge pillows squashed against my chest. She positioned herself so her slit was against my thigh and pressed her lips to mine. I responded by thrusting my tongue deep into her mouth.

She started to rock her hips, rubbing her slit against my thigh. She moved with a slow, sensual rhythm. I could feel my thigh grow wetter and wetter as she masturbated against it. Gripping her leg between my own, I started to grind my clit against her. Our movements grew faster as we humped each other to orgasm.

"I'm gonna cum, Ragyo-sama!" I squealed.

"Uh! Uh!" she grunted as she thrust. "That's right! Grind back against me, you nasty girl! Uh! Uh! Uh!"

Ragyo went rigid, groaning loudly. As she shuddered and squirted above me, I reached my own climax, whimpering and clutching the bedsheets.

After a moment's rest, Ragyo turned to the bedroom's double doors with a smirk. "You can come in now, Hoomaru."

I looked at the doors and noticed they were ajar. For a moment there was silence, then the sound of frantically rustling fabric. The doors creaked open. Hoomaru stepped through unsteadily, clothed in a slightly ruffled white business suit. The flush on her cheeks made it clear what she had been doing. She approached the bed and bowed, struggling not to stare.

"G-good morning, Grand Couturier. I am here to report that the rebel leader is awake and in good health."

Ragyo looked at me. "You're interested in the rebel leader?"

I nodded, smiling. "Mm-hm! I was thinking I might use her to convince Satsuki to take a more active role in our games."

Ragyo grinned, running her fingers through my hair. "I love how you think, Nui. That's why you're my favorite daughter."

* * *

"Morning, Satsuki-chan!" I called as I entered the dungeon. "Ready to make me feel good?"

I activated the lights with a hand gesture. Satsuki remained silent. Her chin rested against her chest as she hung from her Life Fiber shackles.

I vanished from the doorway and reappeared in front of her. "Are you listening, Satsuki-chan? Huh? Huh? Huh?"

She shifted slightly, her brow furrowing in annoyance. "Go ahead and fuck me, Harime, or get out of here."

"Aw, don't be like that, Satsuki-chan! Every relationship has to have some give-and-take. I can't be pleasuring you all the time. Why don't you make me feel good?"

"Go ahead and kill me if you want to. I'll never obey you."

"I think I have something that might change your mind, Satsuki-chan."

Hoomaru appeared at the doorway, pushing a short, pink-haired girl in front of her. The girl was naked except for the Life Fibers that bound her wrists behind her back.

Satsuki looked up, her eyes widening. "Nonon!"

"S-Satsuki-sama?" the pink-haired girl exclaimed. "I thought Ragyo-sama killed you!"

Satsuki snorted. "She would never be so merciful."

I walked up to Nonon and cupped her crotch. She whimpered and turned her face to the side, her cheeks flushing in humiliation.

"This girl was with the rebels who attacked last night," I said, looking over my shoulder at Satsuki. "We thought you two might like to see each other again."

Satsuki glared at me. "What are you planning, Harime?"

"Hoomaru has a knife with her. She'll kill this girl right now if I tell her to. But if you're a good sister and do what I say, I'll let your friend live."

I nodded at Hoomaru. Hoomaru pressed the knife's tip against the small of Nonon's back. Nonon gasped, then turned terrified eyes toward Satsuki.

"I ... I'm scared, Satsuki-sama," she whispered. "I'm sorry. I know I should be stronger. ... But I don't want to die."

"Don't be ashamed, Nonon," Satsuki said. "No one could expect you to do more than you've already done." She returned her attention to me, her eyes narrowing. "What do you want me to do, Harime?"

Giggling, I snapped my fingers. The Life Fibers released Satsuki, who landed in a heap. I sat on the dungeon floor and spread my legs.

"First, I want you to crawl over here on all fours and make me cum."

I could see Satsuki wrestling with her pride as she got onto her hands and knees. When she reached me, she put her hands on my thighs and gave my pussy a lick.

"Come on, Satsuki-chan. Ragyo-sama's eaten you out so many times; I know you can do better than that."

Satsuki's cheeks burned with shame as she leaned forward. She parted my labia and licked my pussy, then circled my exposed clit.

"That's it, Satsuki-chan!" I said, squirming on the floor. "Don't stop!"

Suddenly I knew I was about to cum. Satsuki's technique was nowhere near as good as Ragyo's, but the thrill I got from humiliating her more than made up for it. I leaned back, putting one hand on the floor behind me and the other behind Satsuki's head.

At last the orgasm hit. I arched off the ground, pressing Satsuki's face firmly against my crotch. As my last spasm died down, I released her head, slumping against the floor.

While Satsuki lay on her face, coughing, I stood up and walked behind her.

"Get back on your hands and knees," I ordered.

Satsuki obeyed, then lifted a hand to wipe my juices from her face.

"Don't wipe your face. I want your friend to see you the way you are now."

Satsuki lowered her hand to the floor. I knelt behind her and started to play with her genitals. I stroked my fingers up and down her cunt. I nuzzled her thighs and teased her clit with my tongue.

Then I pulled back and snapped my fingers. A Life Fiber strand descended from the ceiling and wound itself around Satsuki's clit. It began to buzz, releasing the same vibrations that had driven Ryuko insane a few days ago. Satsuki cried out and collapsed forward, resting her forehead against the floor. Muffled whimpers escaped from her mouth. She looked over her shoulder at me with pleading eyes.

"Please," she whispered. "Please don't..."

My insides nearly melted when I heard those words. Satsuki was actually begging me! I was sure she had never begged anyone for anything before. But here she was, begging me not to humiliate her in front of her underling.

I looked at the pink-haired girl across the room. "Do you hear that? Satsuki-chan is begging me not to make her cum in front of you."

I snapped my fingers again, making the Life Fiber vibrate faster. Satsuki cried out in torment, struggling in vain to hold back her orgasm.

"Come on, Satsuki-chan!" I said sweetly. "Show your friend how hard you can cum!"

Satsuki threw her head back and screamed. Her pussy juice sprayed out, coating the Life Fiber, my legs, and the floor behind us. She kept cumming and cumming as the Life Fiber stimulated her clit. At last, completely spent, she fell forward onto her face, gasping for breath.

I walked over to Nonon Jakuzure, who was staring wide-eyed at Satsuki. She gasped as I shoved a hand between her legs. I worked my finger around a bit, then walked back to Satsuki and showed it to her.

"Look how wet your friend is, Satsuki-chan. She must really like watching you cum." I looked at Nonon. "It's no fair to let Satsuki-chan have all the fun. Come on, Nonon-chan. You two should make each other feel good."

At my command, Nonon and Satsuki licked and sucked each other on the dungeon floor. I watched from a corner, rubbing my clit. Out of pity, I let Hoomaru masturbate too. Afterward I made Satsuki and Nonon clean my crotch with their tongues. Satisfied, I strung Satsuki up with Life Fibers again, in accordance with Ragyo's wishes, and left Nonon with her in the dungeon.

* * *

 _Ryuko's POV:_

"Does it feel good, Ryuko-chan?" Nui asked, lifting her face from my breasts.

"Fuck you!"

"That's not very nice, Ryuko-chan. Especially when your little sister's going to so much trouble to make you feel good."

She lowered her head again and lifted one of my breasts to her mouth. She kissed my nipple, then sucked it into her mouth and ran her tongue around it. She moved to my other breast and did the same. She went back and forth, licking and sucking both nipples until they were rock-hard.

I was in Nui's playroom, my wrists held above my head by Life Fibers. I could only stand there as she molested my breasts. Ragyo Kiryuin watched from a chair nearby with a hand between her legs.

"Don't just sit there, Ragyo-sama!" Nui called. "Come play with me!"

"You're such an impatient child!" Ragyo laughed, rising. "Very well. I am Ryuko's mother, after all. It's a mother's duty to comfort her daughter."

Nui moved behind me as Ragyo approached. While Nui fondled my breasts from behind, Ragyo took over where Nui had left off, running her tongue over my nipples.

"My, my," said Ragyo, "I was intending to make your nipples hard, but it seems they're hard already. You must really enjoy having your sister lick your breasts."

Ragyo began making her way down my body. Leaving my breasts, she trailed her tongue over my ribcage and stomach. She licked my pubes and my crotch. She spread my labia with her fingers and thrust her tongue deep inside.

I knew she was intentionally avoiding my clit. I tensed in anticipation every time she neared it, but every time she veered off in another direction. After fucking me with her tongue, she moved lower, licking every inch of my inner thighs. Then she moved back up, spreading my labia again. She licked my exposed pussy from bottom to top, but pulled away just before she reached my clit.

I couldn't take it anymore. As shameful as it was, as low and dirty as it made me feel, I needed to feel her tongue on my clit.

 _Maybe ... maybe if I move my hips a little, she won't notice..._

When her tongue neared my clit again, I shifted ever so slightly, trying to get some contact. But she was too quick for me, pulling her tongue away before it touched my clit. She went back to my thighs, licking and kissing, then started sucking on my slit below my clitoris. By this point, I was beyond caring. Whimpering in frustration, I moved my hips this way and that, trying to rub my clit against her tongue.

"What's wrong?" she taunted. "Why do you keep moving your hips? Is there somewhere you want me to lick?"

"Sh-shut up! I'm only like this because you're controlling my nerves with your Life Fibers!"

"What are you talking about, Ryuko? I'm not using the Life Fiber resonance at all right now."

"You're lying!"

Smirking, Ragyo leaned forward and sucked my clit into her mouth. She held it in her mouth like a tiny popsicle, flicking it with her tongue. I spasmed, cumming hard. She clamped her mouth over my pussy and held it there while I writhed and bucked.

As my orgasm died down, she pulled her face away. "You taste just like Satsuki."

I opened my eyes and glared at her. "You piece of shit. What kind of pervert rapes her own daughters?"

Ragyo met my hateful glare with a smile. "Maybe the same kind of pervert who gets off on her own mother's tongue."

"F-fuck you!"

Ragyo stepped back, and Nui snapped her fingers. Countless Life Fibers descended from the ceiling, twining themselves into cords. They wrapped around my arms and legs and lifted me into the air. I gritted my teeth and turned my face to the side as one of the cords probed my inner thighs.

"I made it extra thick this time, Ryuko-chan!" Nui called. "I know how big you like them."

The thick cord began to penetrate me. I was so wet that it slid in smoothly, but I still gasped at how wide it was stretching me. At last the cord halted, pulsing deep inside. Each pulse sent electricity shooting through the nerves of my cunt.

The cord started to move, slowly at first. Each thrust forced muffled whimpers from my mouth. As the thrusting picked up speed, my whimpers turned into moans and screams. I felt my body begin to tense.

"Look, Nui," Ragyo said. "Your sister is about to cum."

"Is that true, Ryuko-chan?" Nui called. "Are you about to cum? Are you about to cum all over that big, fat cock?"

I arched my back in the air, letting out one long scream. Waves of agonized pleasure ran up and down my body as my juices squirted out around the fat cord. The Life Fibers didn't slow down. They kept thrusting even after my orgasm subsided.

"P-please ..." I pleaded. "... I just came ..."

The Life Fibers were deaf to my pleas. I felt the cord in my pussy increase in thickness as it fucked me even harder. Before I knew it, another orgasm was building inside me, and it was going to be huge. I threw my head back and came with a long, sobbing cry. Still the Life Fibers kept fucking me.

My eyes fluttered open for a moment, and I saw a lone strand of Life Fiber descending from the ceiling. It wrapped around my clit and started to vibrate with a high-pitched whine. I screamed.

I heard Nui's laugh over the whine of the Life Fiber. "What a nasty face. You must be in ecstasy, Ryuko-chan."

I came within seconds, screaming at the top of my lungs. The Life Fiber granted me no relief, continuing to buzz against my sensitive clit. When I managed to open my eyes, I saw two more Life Fiber strands descending toward my crotch.

"No, stop!" I shouted, twisting my body in a futile attempt to escape.

One strand joined its companion around my clit. The other pressed against the very tip of my clit, vibrating cruelly. Meanwhile, Nui walked behind Ragyo. She ran a hand down Ragyo's stomach as my screams filled the room.

"Mmmm, Ragyo-sama, Ryuko-chan looks like she's having so much fun."

I was screaming continuously now, no longer caring how loud I was. My face flipped from side to side as I shrieked.

 _Oh god, I'm going to cum again!_

The Life Fibers kept vibrating against my clit as spasm after spasm wracked my body. Just when I thought I had finished cumming, I felt yet another orgasm building.

I lost count of how many times I came. After what seemed like ages, the Life Fibers pulled away from my crotch. Still wrapped around my limbs, they lowered me to the floor. I dimly heard the playroom door creak open.

"Nighty-night, Ryuko-chan," Nui called sweetly.

I don't know how long I lay there. When I opened my eyes, it was night. I was facing the window that overlooked the courtyard. This time there was no moonlight. Clouds blotted out the sky, leaving the world in pitch blackness. I rested my cheek against the floor and wept.

 _Someone ... please ... help me..._


	8. Secret Secret

Chapter 8 – Secret Secret

 _Satsuki's POV:_

I lay on my mother's bed, my head resting against one of her swan-feather pillows. She smirked down at me as she fondled my breasts. No Life Fibers bound me this time.

"Humans are such frail creatures," she murmured. "Even the strongest of them falls victim to the weakness called compassion."

One of her hands journeyed down my body. It trailed over my neck, my breasts, my stomach. It played along my thigh for a moment before settling on my crotch.

"You're a prime example. A few days ago, you would never have lain here so quietly. Now you obey my every order. Why do you care so much about the life of a mere servant?"

I opened my eyes and glared back at her. "A monster like you would never understand."

She laughed. "I love that defiant expression. Almost as much as I love breaking it."

She lowered her mouth and sucked my breasts while her fingers stimulated my clitoris. I couldn't hold back my whimpers. They burst forth, filling the bedroom with their lewd cadence.

I came hard, gripping the sheets in my fists. When I opened my eyes, my cheek was resting against the pillow and my face was turned toward bedroom's lavish double doors. Nonon stood next to the doors, held at knifepoint by Hoomaru. Our eyes met for a moment before I looked away.

My mother climbed on top of me, positioning her groin over my face. I lifted my head and started to lick her genitals. When her mouth found my clitoris, I fell back against the pillow, whimpering.

"Keep going, Satsuki. Unless you want your friend to die."

Frightened by her threat, I set to work with a renewed effort. To my relief, I felt her body start to respond, pouring juices down her thighs. Small moans interrupted her licking and sucking. Encouraged, I covered her clitoris with my mouth and swirled my tongue around it.

"UUUUUUUUUNNNNNNGGGHHH!" she groaned, cumming onto my face.

My mother collapsed on top of me. As she lay there, I heard a voice call from across the room.

"Aw, Ragyo-sama, you got started without me?"

Looking up, I saw Nui standing in the doorway. Ryuko lay on the floor behind her, bound from head to toe with Life Fibers. A rope or leash woven of Life Fibers extended from Ryuko's fetters to Nui's tiny hand. Nui had dragged the immobilized girl across the mansion by that leash.

"Look, Ryuko-chan," Nui said, "you have an audience this time. Satsuki-chan and her friend Nonon are going to watch you cum!"

Nui snapped her fingers. The Life Fibers around Ryuko's body dispersed, except for the ones around her wrists and ankles.

Nui turned to Hoomaru. "Let Nonon-chan come over here. I want to play with her too."

Hoomaru looked at Ragyo. "Should I let Jakuzure go, ma'am?"

"Walk her over to Nui," Ragyo replied, "but keep your knife out. I want my dear daughter"—she indicated me by grinding her hips, humping my body like a hug pillow—"to remember what will happen if she isn't enthusiastic enough in pleasuring me."

I snorted. "And you said you weren't afraid of me."

Ragyo looked over her shoulder. "What was that, my dear?"

"You need Hoomaru to hold Nonon hostage whenever I'm not wrapped in Life Fibers. You're afraid—afraid I'll kill you if I'm left free for one moment."

A mocking smile spread across my mother's face. "You still think that I am afraid of you? I thought we had put this foolishness to rest."

"Then why do you need to have Hoomaru threaten Nonon? Answer me that, mother."

Anger flashed in Ragyo's eyes. She turned to Hoomaru.

"Leave us, Hoomaru. Close the doors after you, and go back to your office. Leave Nonon Jakuzure here."

"But ma'am, I thought you wanted—"

" _Now_ , Hoomaru!"

"Y-yes, ma'am," the secretary said, retreating through the doors.

As the doors closed behind Hoomaru, Ragyo grabbed me by the neck. She lifted me into the air with one hand and hurled me across the room. I slammed into the far wall and fell to the floor in a heap. I dimly heard my mother's approaching footsteps.

"You think I'm afraid of a human worm like you? I'm not using even a tenth of my full power right now!"

Paralyzing pain shot through my body as she kicked me in the side. She knelt and grabbed my hair, then lifted my face until it was level with hers. She smiled at me.

"You've made a mistake, my dear, angering me like this."

Ignoring the agony that pounded through my body, I opened my eyes and looked straight into hers.

"You're the one who's made a mistake."

In a lightning-fast movement, I pulled out the needle that had been hidden in my hair and jabbed it into my mother's neck. Across the room, Nonon sprang into action. She pulled an identical needle from her hair and lunged at Nui, stabbing her in the arm.

My mother pulled the needle from her neck and staggered backward. A spasm shook her body, dropping her to her knees. When she spoke, her voice was hoarse.

"W-what have you done to me?"

"These are a new kind of Life-Fiber-neutralizing needle," I replied, "designed by Nonon's rebel group. What you're feeling right now is all the Life Fibers inside you desynchronizing."

The old kind of anti-Life-Fiber needle, used by Nudist Beach, only severed the connection between a Kamui or Goku suit and its wearer. This new kind scrambled the connection between a Life-Fiber-infused individual and that individual's own Life Fibers. During the attack on the mansion, Nonon's rebel group had tried to shoot Ragyo and Nui with the needles, but they had evaded the attack. Fortunately, Nonon had managed to hide two of the needles in her hair before being captured.

"I-it can't be!" gasped Nui.

The Grand Couturier was on her knees, hugging her quivering body. She watched in disbelief as the Life Fibers around Ryuko's wrists and ankles unraveled.

"That's right, Ragyo Kiryuin," I said, standing over my mother. "As far as strength goes, you're just an ordinary human now."

"No!" she screamed. "You're lying!"

I grabbed her fist as she swung it toward me. She struggled, cursing, but she couldn't break free from my grip.

"In fact, you're weaker than an ordinary human. Your body isn't used to working without its Life Fibers."

I released Ragyo's hand and knocked her out with a kick to the head. As she hit the floor, a movement caught my eye. Nui was making a run for the doors.

"Oh no you don't!" Ryuko shouted, tackling the Grand Couturier.

Nui shrieked and clawed, but Ryuko and Nonon easily held her down. Just then the double doors swung open.

"Ragyo-sama!" Hoomaru screamed, hurling herself through.

Hoomaru hit Ryuko with a flying kick, sending her shooting across the room. The sleeves of Hoomaru's sport coat elongated, whipping toward me. Unarmed, I could only try to evade the attack. One of the flailing strips of fabric struck me in the side, knocking me to the floor. Hoomaru darted forward, hoisted Ragyo onto her shoulder, and headed back toward the door.

"Grand Couturier!" she shouted. "Follow me!"

Hoomaru fled, followed by Nui. I lifted my head from the floor just in time to see them disappear down the hall. Resisting the urge to lunge after them, I turned to Nonon. A trickle of blood ran down her cheek from just below her right eye.

"Nonon, are you okay?"

Nonon grinned. "It's a needle-wound, but I think I'll live."

I looked at Ryuko, who was climbing to her feet. She hadn't been in on the plan with Nonon and me, but I assumed she would be eager to help finish what we had started.

"What about you? Are you alright?"

"I'm well enough to fight."

I nodded. "Good. Let's go. We'll have to find weapons first."

Flanked by Nonon and Ryuko, I headed out into the hallway. Only one thought filled my mind as I ran.

 _I'll kill you, Ragyo Kiryuin. I swear it._


	9. I'll Kill You

Chapter 9 – I'll Kill You

 _Rei Hoomaru's POV:_

"Ragyo-sama, please!" I cried, gripping the Director's shoulders. "You're in no condition to fight! With you in your current state, Shinra-Koketsu will be worthless. You won't be able to control its power!"

"Silence!" Ragyo snarled, slapping me across the face.

We were standing in the mansion's vast sewing room. Ragyo had ordered me to carry her there. I had thought she was intending to use one of the emergency escape routes, but instead she wanted to don Shinra-Koketsu, the ultimate Kamui that Nui had been designing for use against the rebels.

"Please, Ragyo-sama, listen to reason! You can get your revenge another day, once we've reconnected you with your Life Fibers."

"Shut up!" Nui shrieked. "Nonon Jakazure is going to pay _today_ for what she's done to me!"

I ignored Nui, keeping my eyes fixed on Ragyo. Blood had soaked through the gauze on the side of her neck. Her agitation was keeping the wound open. Or perhaps her blood had forgotten how to clot on its own after all those years of instantaneous Life-Fiber-induced healing.

No longer caring if it would anger her, I threw myself against Ragyo and wrapped my arms around her.

"Please, ma'am, don't do this," I whispered. "I ... I don't want to lose you."

There. It was out. I leaned against the Director, gripping her as tightly as I could. There was a long silence, broken only by my muffled sobs.

"What human weakness. You know how much I despise such things, Hoomaru."

I looked up at Ragyo's face, startled. Had her voice trembled just now? I shook the question from my mind.

"If you're determined not to run," I said, "then grant me just one request. Let me wear Shinra-Koketsu instead of you."

"That Kamui was tailored specifically for Ragyo-sama!" Nui shouted. "An ordinary human like you can't wear it!"

"Nui is right," said Ragyo. "You would not be able to control Shinra-Koketsu, Hoomaru." She paused for a long moment, then added, "But there are other Kamui in this room. Take the Rending Scissors from the cabinet, Nui. We will make our stand here."

* * *

 _Satsuki's POV:_

Ryuko, Nonon, and I arrived in front of the sewing room's double doors. We had tracked Hoomaru there, picking up some Two-Star Goku uniforms along the way.

Nui had once dismissed the Sewing Club's Goku uniforms as trash, but she and Ragyo had saved a few to run experiments on, in case they revealed any secrets about the resistance effort. Ryuko and I were wearing a Fishing Club uniform and a Boxing Club uniform respectively. Nonon had hoped to find a Marching Band uniform but had instead settled for a uniform from the Recycling Club.

"They went in there," I said, nodding at the doors. "I'm sure of it."

Nonon frowned. "Are you sure they haven't taken an escape route? They looked pretty scared right before Hoomaru burst in."

I shook my head. "My mother's pride would never let her run. Nor would Harime's, for that matter. They're in there, preparing to face us."

"What are we waiting for?" Ryuko demanded. "Let's go!"

We kicked open the doors, bracing for an immediate attack. None came. Without lowering our guard, we leaned forward and peered inside. Rows and rows of sewing machines stretched out in front of us, running up and down the factory-sized room. Glimmering snippets of Life Fiber floated in the air overhead.

My mother stood in the middle of the room, dressed in a familiar white uniform.

 _She's wearing Junketsu!_

Hoomaru stood next to Ragyo. Arrogant as always, Ragyo gazed off to the side, as if occupied with something else. She slowly turned her smirk toward us, pretending to notice us for the first time.

"Goku uniforms?" she said. "How droll."

"Yes," I said. "Two-Star Goku uniforms. More than enough against a weak old woman in a Kamui that doesn't fit her."

"How dare you speak to Ragyo-sama like that!" Hoomaru shouted, launching herself at me.

Nonon met Hoomaru in mid-air. She crossed her Goku-armored arms in front of her face, warding off a blow from Hoomaru's whip-sleeves. The force of the collision threw the two combatants in opposite directions. Nonon landed in front of me, skidding to a halt on her right knee. She uncrossed her arms and looked over her shoulder.

"I'll take care of this one, Satsuki-sama!"

Nonon turned back to Hoomaru, pressing a button on her Recycling Club uniform. The uniform flashed as its Recycling Mode was activated.

"I'm gonna recycle you into dog food, bitch!" Nonon shouted.

As Nonon and Hoomaru clashed in the air again, Ragyo reached over and flicked the clips on Junketsu's left armband.

 **LIFE FIBER OVERRIDE: KAMUI JUNKETSU**

As Ragyo stood before me in her transformed Kamui, a much shorter figure stepped out from behind a sewing machine. Instead of her usual pink dress, she wore a black sailor suit.

"Senketsu!" Ryuko exclaimed.

"Yep, it's him!" said Nui. "But I think you'll find that he's changed quite a bit. I injected him with my own blood, plus some Life Fibers from Junketsu. He's on our side now!" She put a hand on Senketsu's sleeve, stroking the fabric. "You know, it's funny. The Life Fibers in my body used to repel others so that I couldn't synchronize with a Kamui. But now that you've severed my connection to my own Life Fibers, Senketsu and I can become one!"

"You bitch! Give Senketsu back!"

Smiling, Nui pulled the activation pin from her glove.

"Come and get him."

 **LIFE FIBER SYNCHRONIZE: KAMUI SENKETSU**

As the glitters faded, Nui reached behind a sewing machine and pulled out the reconstructed Rending Scissors. She twisted them apart and tossed one blade to Ragyo.

"Come on, Ryuko-chan," she said, brandishing the other half. "Come join Mako and your father!"

Screaming in rage, Ryuko hurled herself at Nui.

I returned my attention to Ragyo. She still stood in front of me with that damn smirk on her face.

"Prepare yourself, Ragyo Kiryuin!" I shouted.

* * *

 _Mako's POV:_

 _THUMP!_

I felt something hard slam against my face. It took me a moment to realize that that hard thing was the floor.

I sat up, looking around. I was in the room Nui had put me in after pretending to make Ryuko kill me. By the way, did you know that someone can pass out from being choked but not die? My dad had told me that once, so naturally I'd always assumed it was wrong. But I guessed it was right, since I was still alive.

Anyway, Nui had been keeping me in this room for the last few days. I kept asking her to let me see Ryuko, but she said she wanted Ryuko to think I was dead. She came in every day to tell me how sad Ryuko was and to ... do things to me. She'd tied me up with Life Fibers so I couldn't get away. I could only hang there while she did what she liked. She said she wanted to see which of us would turn into her "pussy slave" first.

I couldn't figure out why the Life Fibers had dropped me. Unlike Nui's playroom, this room didn't have any locks on the door. The Life Fibers were the only thing that stopped me from leaving and finding Ryuko. I knew Nui wanted Ryuko to think I was dead, so I couldn't figure out why she'd told the Life Fibers to let go of me.

Then I realized that Nui might be in some kind of trouble. Maybe she was fighting Ryuko. Maybe something had happened to her so she couldn't control the Life Fibers anymore. But if that was true, then Ryuko might be in trouble too! I decided to go look for Ryuko, even though I was sort of afraid.

The room was pitch-black, but I could see light coming from the bottom of the door. I walked toward the light. I got my feet tangled in something on the floor (I learned later that they were my clothes) and tripped, but eventually I made it to the door. The light sort of blinded me when the door opened, but I shaded my eyes and headed out to look for Ryuko.

* * *

 _Satsuki's POV:_

By now the sewing room was a mess. Smashed sewing machines lay everywhere. Nonon's uniform vacuumed up the plastic and metal debris, recycling it into miniature cannonballs that Nonon fired at Hoomaru. Ryuko fought Nui near the sewing room's double doors, parrying Nui's Scissor Blade with a mace-shaped fishing rod.

Ragyo's Scissor Blade struck my Life-Fiber-reinforced boxing glove, pouring sparks across the sewing room floor. I winced as the force of the blow shot through my already tortured arm. The blade released an ear-shattering screech as it slid along the giant glove and glanced off to the side.

When Ragyo swung again, I ducked beneath the blade and came up inside her guard. I tried to land an uppercut, but she easily dodged the blow. She leapt back a few paces, then launched herself forward again.

"Scissor Blade Decapitation Mode!"

With a metallic groan, the Scissor Blade unfolded to its full length as Ragyo swung it. I held up my gloves, but that didn't stop the blow from knocking me across the room. I hit the wall, then fell on top of a broken sewing machine.

I could taste blood in my mouth, but I had no time to wonder how serious my injuries were. As soon as I regained my senses, I lifted my eyes, looking for my mother. My vision cleared just in time for me to see her speeding toward me.

I raised my right glove to ward off her blow. Her Scissor Blade struck the glove, pinning me against the wall. I could feel the glove start to crack as she bore down on it with all her strength. Within seconds, the glove would shatter, and the razor-sharp blade would slice through my body like tissue paper.

My mother smiled at me. "You're finished, Satsuki. Admit it: you are no match for me."

Straining to keep my right glove raised, I quietly slipped off my left one. The rock-hard glove clanged against the floor, but Ragyo ignored it in her eagerness to kill me. I shoved my bare left hand into the pocket of my Boxing Club uniform and pulled out the anti-Life-Fiber needle I had saved from my previous struggle with Ragyo.

"You _are_ stronger," I said, "I admit that much. But you have one weakness, mother: you never learn from your mistakes!"

As Ragyo's brow furrowed in puzzlement, I jabbed the needle into her neck a second time. Sparkles filled the air as the needle severed the connection between her and Junketsu. The transformation reversed, draining every drop of superior strength from her body.

The Scissor Blade went flying from her grasp as my boxing glove knocked it away. Before she could react, I lunged forward and buried the glove in her stomach. Her head snapped forward, eyes bulging in their sockets. Flecks of blood flew from her gaping mouth. I stepped back and let her crumple to the floor.

The Scissor Blade lay a few feet away. I walked over and picked it up, then returned to the spot where Ragyo lay face-down on the floor. She tensed as she felt the Scissor Blade's tip poke the back of her neck.

"Get on your knees," I said quietly. I wanted her to see what was coming.

Shaking, my mother rose to her knees. I positioned myself in front of her, holding the Scissor Blade inches from her trembling face. Deprived of the power of the Life Fibers, she was no longer the proud rainbow-haired goddess who had shattered swords with her fist. She was just a wretched, broken old woman in a tattered uniform.

"Please ... daughter ... spare me," she wheezed through her shattered windpipe, her eyes big with fear. "Please ... have mercy..."

"Look at you: the proud Ragyo Kiryuin, who once called herself divine, pleading for her life. Pathetic. Such contemptible behavior is unforgivable."

The Scissor Blade flashed through the air. There was a brief silence, then the thud of Ragyo's head against the floor. Hot blood fountained from the stump between her shoulders. This time no Life Fibers reappeared between her neck and her head.

"Ragyo-sama!" Hoomaru shrieked from across the room. "NO!"

Hoomaru turned her back on Nonon and threw herself at me. Her loyalty was her undoing. A cannonball from Nonon's Goku uniform struck her in the back of the head, flooring her.

Nonon and I turned to the far end of the room, where Ryuko and Nui battled in front of the sewing room's doors. Nui's eye widened in terror as all three of her former captives advanced on her. It widened even further when she saw Hoomaru lying unconscious next to Ragyo's headless corpse.

"I-impossible!"

Gripping her Scissor Blade, Nui started backing toward the doors.

"Game over, Harime!" Ryuko shouted.

As Nui turned to flee, Ryuko pressed a button on her fishing rod. A miniature harpoon shot from the rod's tip and buried its barbed head in Nui's shoulder. Nui fell to her knees with a scream of pain. Her Scissor Blade clattered to the floor.

At that moment, the doors swung open.

"Ryuko-chan!" Mako shouted, jumping through. "There you are!"

While the rest of us gaped at Mako, Nui saw her chance. She grabbed Mako's arm and yanked the girl between herself and us. Panting, she pressed her Scissor Blade against Mako's throat.


	10. Sorry, I'm Done Being a Good Kid

Chapter 10 – Sorry, I'm Done Being a Good Kid

I stared in disbelief. "Mako! You're..."

"Yep, she's alive!" said Nui. A taunting smile began to form again on her lips. "You don't think I'd actually get rid of such a cute little toy, do you?"

Mako was completely naked. Nui held her by her hair with one hand and pressed the Scissor Blade to her throat with the other.

"You should've seen her, Ryuko-chan. Mako-chan cried so adorably when I played with her."

"Harimeeeeeee!" I snarled, my grip tightening on my Goku fishing rod.

The harpoon was still embedded in Nui's shoulder. A thin but unbreakable cord of Life Fibers connected the harpoon to my fishing rod. If I retracted the harpoon, it might catch Nui off-guard and let me rescue Mako. Keeping my eyes on Nui, I inched my finger toward the button that would retract the harpoon.

"Uh-uh-uh, Ryuko-chan," Nui said, wagging her finger at me. "If you move your finger any closer to that button, I'll slice Mako-chan's windpipe wiiiiiiide open! Now drop the fishing rod. Go on, be a good big sister and do it, okay?"

The fishing rod clattered to the floor.

"You too, Satsuki-chan. Put down the Scissor Blade, nice and slow."

Seeing Satsuki hesitate, Nui pressed her own Scissor Blade even more tightly against her hostage. Mako winced, whimpering in fear, as a trickle of blood ran down her collarbone. Desperate, I turned to Satsuki.

"Satsuki, please," I begged.

"Tch." Relenting, Satsuki lowered her Scissor Blade to the floor. All eyes turned back to Nui. The fear had vanished from the Grand Couturier's face, replaced by her usual grin.

"It's pointless, Harime!" Satsuki shouted. "You've lost. Both your allies have been defeated. You've lost contact with the Life Fibers. What are you going to do now? Carry Mankanshoku around with you everywhere as a human shield?"

The ends of Nui's smile twisted farther upward. "Not _both_ my allies, actually."

I heard the scrape of metal against concrete as someone lifted Satsuki's fallen Scissor Blade from the floor.

"Satsuki! Look out!" I shouted.

Hoomaru swung the Scissor Blade at Satsuki with all her strength. Satsuki twisted out of the way, but she wasn't fast enough to completely avoid injury. The Scissor Blade cut a deep wound in her shoulder, rendering her right arm useless. She clutched the wound and fell back, gritting her teeth in pain.

"Satsuki-sama!" Nonon shouted.

Forgetting about Nui, Nonon turned her wrath on Hoomaru. Hoomaru's sleeves extended, blocking a barrage of cannonballs from Nonon's Recycling Club uniform. Nonon abandoned the long-range attacks and threw herself at Hoomaru. The metallic glove of Nonon's uniform clanged against Hoomaru's Scissor Blade.

As the battle heated up again, I made the mistake of taking my eyes off Nui. As a result, I didn't see her speeding toward me. I brought my fishing rod up just in time to block her Scissor Blade, but the force of the blow sent me flying. I smashed through the doors of a giant, ceiling-height wardrobe at the other end of the room, slammed against the wardrobe's backboard, and landed on the floor of the wardrobe. The wardrobe tottered, creaking, and fell forward with a crash.

My Goku uniform partly cushioned me, enough for me to retain consciousness. The weight of the wardrobe was suffocating. I had to get out! Nui might be heading toward me at that very moment, armed with the Scissor Blade. I pushed and tore at the clothes and hangers on every side, trying to find a way out of the wardrobe, but every move I made only entangled me further.

Heart pounding, I forced myself to stop struggling and think. This was a wardrobe filled with Life-Fiber-based clothes. Some of them were sure to be Kamui. Maybe if I put one on, I would gain the strength to break free. I didn't know whether my Fishing Club uniform would interfere with the synchronization, but it was worth a shot.

As I felt around, my hand closed on what felt like the hem of a robe. That seemed promising. Unable to see anything, I pulled the robe toward me. I somehow managed to wriggle through the robe's opening. As I found the robe's sleeves and shoved my arms through, I felt new power begin to course through my body. Sparkles filled my vision, lighting up the wardrobe's interior.

I burst through the fallen wardrobe's backboard, landing in front of a toppled sewing machine. I was wearing what looked like a giant Japanese wedding dress. Far too long for me, the dress puddled around my feet and hid my hands in its sleeves. Rainbow-colored light streamed from the dress's openings. It was like the light that surrounded Ragyo, except stronger.

Nonon and Hoomaru stopped fighting and stared. Nui, who had made it halfway to my end of the room, gaped at me.

"No!" she cried. "It can't be!"

Blinding light erupted from the chest of my robe. As I turned my face away from the brilliance, I saw giant red and yellow eyes floating on either side of my body.

Nui shrieked as sparkles hid her body from view. When the sparkles disappeared, Senketsu was back in his sailor suit form. Nui began to back away, but her knees buckled under her. She fell to the floor, staring up at me with an expression of pure terror. The Scissor Blade fell from her hand.

"Shinra-Koketsu," Satsuki murmured. She had bound her shoulder with a strip of cloth and now stood next to Nonon.

"What's Shinra-Koketsu?" I asked.

"The name of the Kamui you're wearing," Satsuki replied. "I used to overhear my mother and Harime planning its design. Shinra-Koketsu is the ultimate Kamui. It releases an Absolute Domination field that lets its wearer command all Life Fibers and that paralyzes all enemies who are wearing Life-Fiber-based clothing."

My heart pounded in my chest as I processed Satsuki's words. If her words were true, then this fight was over. Nui and Hoomaru were on their hands and knees now, as if held down by some huge weight, struggling to move.

Suddenly I noticed Mako lying motionless on the floor. Horrified, I ran over to Mako and knelt over her. She was unconscious, her eyes closed and her body limp as rag doll.

"Mako!" I shouted. "Mako, are you alright?!"

Satsuki bent over Mako, feeling for breath and a pulse.

"She's okay," Satsuki said. "She just fainted."

"You're sure?" I said.

"I'm sure," said Satsuki. She glanced over her shoulder, at our two remaining enemies, then turned to me. "Let's finish this."

I nodded.

Ignoring Hoomaru, who stood immobilized a few feet away, I headed toward Nui. She could only kneel where she was, staring up at me, as I approached her.

"Give Senketsu back, you bitch!"

I kicked Nui in the face, knocking her onto her back, then knelt and tugged Senketsu off of her.

"Senketsu!" I shouted, holding the Kamui in front of me and shaking him. "Senketsu, do you hear me?!"

"He can't answer you," said Satsuki. "You heard Harime. Senketsu doesn't recognize you as an ally anymore. If we're lucky, we'll be able to reverse the effect later."

Blinking back tears, I carefully folded Senketsu and laid him on the floor. Then I rose up to my full height and turned back to Nui. She was lying on her back, looking up at me, too terrified to move. Without Senketsu or a connection to her body's own Life Fibers, she was nothing but a weak little girl now. I decided to take my time killing her.

I brought my foot down on her stomach, driving the air from her lungs, then kicked her hard in the side. As she curled up in pain, I bent down and picked up the Scissor Blade she had dropped.

"Scissor Blade Decapitation Mode!"

Trembling, Nui stared up at the transformed Scissor Blade.

"No ... wait ..."

"Come on, little sister. You can beg better than that," I said, taunting her with her own words.

I lowered the giant blade toward Nui, relishing the pain and fear on her face. She whimpered as the edge pressed against her neck.

"Please ... don't ..."

"Let's see... Should I slit your throat right now? Or maybe I should cut off your arms and legs and let the rebels use you as their masturbation hole."

"No ... please ..."

As Nui pleaded for her life, I remembered something Satsuki had said just a moment before.

 _It releases a field that lets its wearer control all Life Fibers._

Satsuki had been talking about Shira-Koketsu, the Kamui I was wearing. Curious, I glanced at a strand of Life Fiber that hung from the ceiling nearby.

"Hey."

Like a snake responding to a snake charmer, the strand came alive at my command. It slithered toward me through the air until its tip was inches from my face. Before I could utter another word, the strand responded to my thoughts, forming a portion of itself into a triangle in front of my face. It reshaped itself into a circle, then a heart, then a square, as fast as I could form the shapes in my mind.

Satisfied, I turned back to Nui. Other Life Fibers descended from the ceiling, joining the first one. I smiled at Nui as the strands wrapped themselves together into a thick, tentacle-shaped cord.

"You know, maybe I shouldn't kill you after all. I have a better idea."


	11. This is Not a Love Song

Chapter 11 – This is Not a Love Song

Morning sunlight streamed through the windows of the Kiryuin mansion, rousing me from my sleep. I sat up and rubbed my eyes, smiling at the head of brown hair that poked out from the comforter next to me. Mako lay with her back to me, snoring softly.

About a year had passed since Satsuki, Nonon, and I defeated Ragyo and Nui. Now that I had Shinra-Koketsu, it had been easy to free the humans trapped inside COVERS. At my command, the Original Life Fiber had attached itself to the transmitter in Honnoji Academy and sent out a signal telling all COVERS to revert to normal clothing. I had even managed to return Senketsu to his old self. The world was back to normal, for the most part.

Of course, there were some things I couldn't bring back, such as Mako's family. Even after a year, I sometimes glimpsed the pain that Mako hid under her cheerful smile.

The sound of rustling sheets interrupted my thoughts.

"Morning, Ryuko-chan!"

Mako was now sitting up in bed. She raised her arms over her head and stretched, thrusting out her naked chest. She lowered her arms and smiled at me.

I smiled back. "Good morning, Mako."

"Do you have anything to do today?" she asked.

"Not much. It's the weekend, and Satsuki tells me the fall clothing line has been finalized."

Mako's eyes sparkled eagerly. "Does that mean we have time to take a bath together?"

I grinned. "Sure. Just give me a couple of minutes. I'll meet you in the bathroom."

I started to get out of bed, but Mako grabbed my arm.

"Mmmmmmm, Ryuko-chan ... I don't think I can wait that long."

Mako got out from under the covers and crawled over to me, pressing her lips against mine. Our tongues coiled around each other in our mouths. Breaking the kiss, Mako lowered her mouth to my chest and started to suck my exposed breasts. The thought of a bath with Mako had already made my nipples rock-hard, but they hardened even more as Mako's tongue ran over them. She went back and forth between my breasts, making sure to give them equal attention.

I leaned back against the headboard and closed my eyes, focusing on the sensation of Mako's mouth on my breasts. When I opened my eyes, she had a hand between her legs and was working her clit as she pleasured me.

"Oh god, Mako," I groaned. "That's so hot."

I reached down and started rubbing my clit. Moans filled the room as we masturbated to each others' bodies.

"I'm gonna cum, Ryuko-chan!" Mako cried. She had stopped sucking my breasts and was resting her cheek against my chest.

"Me too, Mako," I whispered. "Let's cum together!"

With my free hand, I cupped Mako's chin and lifted her face so that she was looking into my eyes. We pressed our lips together and kissed passionately as our fingers drove us closer and closer to orgasm.

"Ah! Ryuko-chan!" Mako cried, breaking the kiss. "I'm cumming!"

I grasped Mako's free hand with my own. Lacing our fingers together, we cried out in unison as our orgasm washed over us.

"Shit, Mako," I panted, looking down at the comforter. "You've drenched the whole bed! Come on, let's get you washed up."

Together we staggered out of the bedroom. Mako was a bit weak in the knees after cumming so hard, so she leaned against me as I led the way down the hall. I headed toward the nearest bathroom. I would've liked to go to Grand Bathhouse, but I doubted I would be able to make it that far before throwing Mako on the floor and fucking her.

We stumbled into the bathroom, and I set Mako down on a stool. I rinsed her down with the showerhead and started to wash her. Kneeling in front of her, I squirted a generous amount of liquid soap onto my palms and worked it into a rich lather on her breasts. My left hand continued kneading her breasts, while my right hand slid between her legs.

"Oooooh Ryuko-chan, it feels so good!" she moaned.

I activated the showerhead with my left hand and pointed the stream at her crotch. I could hear my fingers making squelching noises inside her as the water droplets beat against her clit.

"Ryu ... ko ... cha ..." she gasped, her face contorting.

Her orgasm cut off her words. She doubled over and cried out, clutching the stool with both hands.

I couldn't take it any longer. I quickly rinsed the soap from Mako's breasts—mainly so I could see them better—and then sat down on a stool across from her. Mako leapt eagerly from her seat and knelt in front of me. I sighed in pleasure as she ran her soapy hands over my breasts. As her fingers found my crotch, she leaned forward, muffling my whimpers with her mouth. I came, moaning loudly into the kiss.

We had just climbed into the bathtub when we heard a knock on the door.

"Ryuko," Satsuki called from the other side of the hammered glass. "Are you in there?"

"Yeah," I called back.

"Can I come in for a moment? We need to talk. It's about the renegade COVERS."

Shinra-Koketsu's design was impressive but not flawless. A few COVERS hadn't responded to my command when I ordered them to revert. They still lurked in the alleys and side streets of cities all over the planet, snatching unsuspecting humans for use as additional energy sources. Along with an international team of volunteers, Satsuki had been working to destroy the renegade COVERS. I had dropped out of school to help.

Satsuki stepped into the bathroom. She was wearing one of the Revocs Corporation's new summer designs—a light purple blouse with a white skirt—and a pair of white sandals. Mako and I sat side-by-side in the tub, facing her, covered up to our necks in steamy water. She lifted an eyebrow when she saw us sitting together but made no comment.

"We've received reports of multiple renegade COVERS in Yokohama," she said. "Nonon and I will take a helicopter there today to check on the situation."

As Satsuki spoke, I felt a hand on my leg. I glanced at Mako out of the corner of my eye. She was sitting quietly beside me, smiling straight ahead as if nothing was happening. Her hand rested on my thigh for a moment, then slid to my crotch.

I quickly returned my gaze to Satsuki, who was still talking about the renegade COVERS.

"... should be able to deal with the situation, but if we have trouble, I may need to call on you to help out with Shinra-Koketsu. Okay, Ryuko?"

"No problem," I said, struggling not to stutter as Mako stroked my folds.

I thought Satsuki was about to leave. Instead she launched into another report. Though she was the coordinator of the anti-COVERS efforts, she made a point of keeping me informed. I usually appreciated the gesture, but at the moment I wished she would shut up and leave already. I glanced again at Mako. The brown-haired girl was still staring back at Satsuki as if she were completely unaware of what her hand was doing. When her fingers found my clit, I winced and had to bite my lip to keep from whimpering.

"Are you alright, Ryuko?" Satsuki asked.

"Y-yes," I said, collecting myself. "Go on."

Frowning, Satsuki continued her report. She was saying something about our progress against renegade COVERS in northern Europe, but I had stopped paying attention. All my effort was aimed at keeping my composure while Mako masturbated me under the water.

By now, the strains of an orgasm were beginning to build. If this continued much longer, I would cum right in front of Satsuki. I didn't know if I would be able to hide my orgasm. I frantically grabbed Mako's wrist, but she resisted my efforts to pull her hand away. I couldn't struggle with her or Satsuki would know what was going on. I kept my eyes fixed on Satsuki as my orgasm inched closer and closer.

My body jerked under the water as I came. I leaned forward, biting my lip to stifle a cry. Most of my body was hidden behind the bathtub's tall sides, so the movement wasn't as obvious as it could have been. For a moment I hoped that Satsuki hadn't noticed, but the red on her cheeks was unmistakable. She hurried through the rest of the report and turned to leave.

"I'm taking off with Nonon in a few minutes. If I won't be back in time for dinner, I'll text you."

As the door closed behind Satsuki, Mako turned to me with a mischievous grin on her face. Instead of returning her gaze, I slipped my hand between her spread legs. My fingers pinched her clit, making her double over and gasp. Water sloshed over the sides of the tub as she writhed.

"Payback time," I whispered in her ear.

* * *

"Mmmmmmmmmm!" Nui whimpered as a vibrator's fat head penetrated her cunt.

By now, Mako was probably asleep in class. I had walked her to the bus stop and kissed her goodbye before hurrying back to the mansion. I was now in the vast underground chamber containing the Original Life Fiber. Woven from one long strand, the reddish-yellow extraterrestrial hung from the ceiling high above, pulsing rhythmically. Hoomaru was curled up somewhere inside that mass of living thread, serving as the Original Life Fiber's last remaining energy source.

Nui lay on the chamber's cold floor. I crouched between her legs, slowly working a huge vibrator into her pussy.

"Look at you," I said, "bucking your hips like that. Do you want to cum that badly?"

I pulled the vibrator out of her cunt and pressed it against her clit, turning it up to the highest setting.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhh!" she cried, flipping her face from side to side.

"You'd better not cum," I whispered. "If you do, you'll be punished."

I slipped a finger inside her and worked it in and out while torturing her clit with the vibrator. She writhed and whimpered beneath me before finally arching off the floor.

I rose to my feet and smirked down at her panting body. "You fucking came."

I walked over to the spot where Shinra-Koketsu lay folded. I pulled on the Kamui and turned back to my prisoner.

"Time for your punishment."

Up above, a mass of tendrils emerged from the Original Life Fiber, winding into a thick cord. The cord wrapped around Nui's body, lifting her into the air. She looked pleadingly at me as the Life Fiber tentacle probed the entrance to her pussy.

I grinned up at her. "Mako and Satsuki are out for the day. That means we can be as loud as we want in here."

Nui trembled.


	12. Your Eyes Only

Chapter 12 – Your Eyes Only

By the time Nonon and I returned from Yokohama, we were both starving. Fortunately, Ryuko had left some food for us on the dining room table. It was fast food take-out, as usual. We devoured the lukewarm fare in silence.

It had taken all day to hunt down the renegade COVERS in Yokohama, and we still weren't sure we had gotten all of them. There had been far more than we had expected. The back alleys were swarming with them. By the time we realized how many there were, it was too late in the day to ask Ryuko to come all the way over to join us. We'd finished the job as quickly as we could and headed back home.

It was just past midnight when we finished eating. We washed our plates and headed upstairs to shower. On the way, we passed the Grand Bathhouse. I knew Nonon would have liked to bathe with me in the Bathhouse, but I had made it clear to her that I never wanted to go into that room again.

Once inside the bathroom, we pulled off our clothes. I laid Junketsu next to the sink, while Nonon tossed her Goku uniform on the floor. I stepped under the showerhead and let out a sigh, feeling the warm water wash the soreness from my muscles.

I heard Nonon squirt liquid soap onto her palms behind me. She rubbed her hands together, building up the lather, then started to massage my back. Her hands started at my shoulders and moved lower, eventually finding my buttocks. As she kneaded my cheeks, a memory flashed through my mind—a memory of my mother running a sponge between my buttocks in the dungeon. I squeezed my eyes shut and shook the thought from my head.

Nonon had finished soaping my buttocks. Her fingers were so close to my most sensitive place. My genitals ached for contact. But her hands moved back upward instead.

She reached around my back and grasped my breasts with her hands. More than a head shorter than me, she had to reach up quite a bit to cup them. I sighed as her fingertips rubbed my nipples, making them harden under the showerhead's stream.

"Your boobs are amazing, Satsuki-sama," she whispered. "I can't get over how beautiful you are."

By this point, she seemed to have forgotten about lathering my body. The shower had washed any remaining soap from her hands, and she made no move to replenish her supply. She just stood behind me, squeezing and kneading my breasts, her hard nipples pressed against my back.

One of her hands left my breasts and slid down my stomach. I let out a faint moan as she finally cupped my crotch. I had needed this all day. Her middle finger slipped past my folds, forcing a groan from my mouth.

Nonon pressed the heel of her hand firmly against my clitoris, grinding it in small, tight circles. I fell forward with a gasp. I threw my hands in front of me, against the shower wall, for support. Arms quivering, head bowed, I struggled to hold myself upright. Her fingers moved faster and faster inside me, the wet, squishy sounds clearly audible over the shower spray.

I was so close. All she had to do was grind my clit one more time, and I would achieve the release I had been longing for all day. Just once more...

Instead, she pulled her hand away. Bewildered, I looked over my shoulder.

"Satsuki-sama," she whimpered, her face aching with lust, "I want to watch your face when you cum. And I want you to touch me."

Desperate for her to continue, I turned around to face her and reached between her legs. She gasped and doubled over. It was all she could do to open her eyes again and reach forward with her hand.

The shower was all but forgotten. Face to face, we sank to our knees under the pelting water, panting as we fingered each other toward orgasm. Nonon curled her fingers inside me while I stroked and rolled her clit.

I was getting close, and so was she. I tensed, squeezing my eyes shut.

"Don't close your eyes, Satsuki-sama! Look at me! Please, look at me!"

I forced my eyes open and returned Nonon's gaze. As we stared desperately into each others' eyes, the orgasm hit us both. I got a glimpse of Nonon's face twisting in ecstasy before I threw my head back and cried out.

Panting, we opened our eyes.

"I love you, Satsuki-sama," Nonon murmured.

I smiled, brushing Nonon's cheek with my hand.

"I love you too."

Nonon's gentle smile took on a seductive look. "Up for a second round?"

My face gave her all the answer she needed.


	13. The Story You Don't Know

Chapter 13 – The Story You Don't Know

 _Ryuko's POV:_

Mako's scream jarred me awake. Opening my eyes, I saw her sitting up, staring wide-eyed at the wall clock across from our bed.

"GAAAAAAH! I'M LATE FOR SCHOOL! Ryuko-chan, why didn't you warn me?!"

Mako leaped off the bed and began running around our room, opening and closing closets and drawers in an attempt to find her school uniform. I sat up in bed and rubbed my eyes, watching her dash back and forth. Every few seconds, she looked at the wall clock and screamed again. Finally she found her uniform, which was draped over a chair in the middle of the room, and pulled it on.

"Bye, Ryuko-chan!" she called, dashing through the bedroom door.

After Mako left, I lay in bed for a few minutes, letting my sleepiness wear off. Then I stretched my arms over my head, yawning, and rolled out of bed. I tossed my pajamas on the chair that had recently supported Mako's uniform and pulled on a shirt and some shorts.

It looked like another quiet day in the mansion. Satsuki was away on a business trip, and Mako wouldn't be back until the late afternoon. As I shuffled into the hallway, I wondered if I was being lazy. Scratch that; I _knew_ I was being lazy. But I wondered if I'd been a bit too lazy over the past year.

At first, dropping out of school again had made sense. But now? Sure, Satsuki called on me to fight the COVERS from time to time, but there was no reason I couldn't go to school. I could've been like those magical anime girls, who balance monster-fighting with school life—that is, if I'd had the motivation to catch up on my studies, which I didn't have.

Recently Satsuki had been bugging me about it. "Are you going to lie around the mansion all day?" "Have you thought about college?" "What do you plan to do now?" I seriously wished she would stop interrogating me. I kept telling her that I needed time to think things through. I'd been a dropout long before my father's death. How did she expect me to know what I wanted to do with my life?

When I reached the staircase leading downstairs, I glanced over my shoulder.

"Mako, are you there?" I called.

No answer came. Of course, I hadn't expected one, but it was best to be on the safe side. I plodded downstairs.

"Hello?" I called when I reached the foot of the stairs. "Mako?"

Again hearing no answer, I continued on my way.

The Kiryuin mansion was huge, with all sorts of secret rooms and passageways. After navigating the maze of corridors, I finally reached the giant soundproof double doors leading to the Original Life Fiber. Only Satsuki and I could unlock those doors; even Satsuki's loyal butler Soroi didn't have a key. Mako didn't know the room existed.

The doors creaked open, throwing a bar of light across the huge room. I flipped a switch to turn on the lights. Nui hung in the middle of the room, held a few inches off the ground by the Original Life Fiber's tendrils. Her eye, peering out between matted tangles of hair, widened in fear as I stepped in.

Recently she had been begging me for medicine to help her sleep. At first I had refused, reluctant to do anything that she might interpret as kindness, but I had changed my mind after noticing how delirious she was becoming. I wanted her to get some sleep so she would be fully aware of everything I did to her.

I walked over to a box filled with plastic and rubber objects of various shapes and sizes. I had bought them, as well as the sleep meds, with a credit card linked to one of Satsuki's bank accounts. As the Kiryuin family's sole legal heir, she had more money than she knew what to do with, so she took a hands-off approach to my spending habits.

I reached into the box and pulled out a syringe filled with a powerful aphrodisiac. Lately Nui had started to build up tolerance to it, so I had been increasing the dosage. As I lifted the syringe, I made a mental note to check the safety info for the aphrodisiac. I was going to have to increase the dosage again soon, but I didn't want to give her a lethal overdose. I had plenty more revenge left to dish out before I would even think about letting her die.

As I walked toward Nui, I passed under the shadow of the Original Life Fiber. Hoomaru was curled up somewhere inside that mass of living thread. I had tortured Hoomaru once or twice by forcing her to watch the security camera footage of Ragyo's death. In my opinion, anyone who had worked with Ragyo and Nui deserved to suffer. But I mostly ignored her. Every moment I spent on her was a moment I could spend hurting Nui.

Over the past year, I had trained the Life Fibers to obey me even when I wasn't wearing Shinra-Koketsu. As I approached, the Life Fibers lowered Nui until her toes were almost touching the floor. I grabbed her chin, jerked her face to the side, and stuck the syringe into her neck. She gasped as the aphrodisiac flooded into her bloodstream, taking effect even before I finished injecting it.

I dropped the empty syringe and walked behind her, reaching around her body. She gasped as my hands found her breasts. I fondled them, kneading them in my palms and flicking my thumbs over her nipples. Within moments, her breathing became heavy and ragged.

"Don't cum," I whispered, "or you'll be punished."

As I worked, I could hear small, muffled whimpers escaping her throat. I could tell she was trying to keep them in but couldn't. I gripped her breasts tighter, listening to her pathetic attempts to muffle her whimpers. Suddenly she stiffened, crying out, then went limp.

She had creamed.

"Holy shit, you came just from having your boobs touched? And you once called _me_ a slut."

I sent the Life Fibers a mental command. They lowered Nui farther, until her feet were touching the ground. A single strand unwound itself from her wrists and headed for her groin, brushing over her skin as it descended.

Nui turned her desperate eye toward me. "No, please! Not with the aphrodisiac. I can't take it!"

"This is your punishment, Harime. I told you not to cum."

"No ... oh god, please ... someone, help me!"

"No one cares, Harime," I whispered in her ear. "No one gives a fuck about your worthless life."

"Please, no, I—aaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAAHHH!"

Winding around her clit, the strand started to vibrate, filling the room with its whine. Nui cried out, her face contorting. Her hips started to buck involuntarily.

Though her telepathic link to her Life Fibers had been broken, they still permeated every nerve in her body. With my newfound control over Life Fibers, I could keep her from cumming as long as I wanted. I watched as she writhed in the same torment that had once made me strangle Mako.

"Please!" she cried. "Let me cum!"

I just smirked and told the strand to vibrate faster. She sobbed and whimpered, fucking the air while the Life Fiber tortured her clit. Two more strands descended, wrapping themselves around her nipples.

"Let me cum!" she screamed. "Please, let me cum!"

I turned toward the doorway.

"Bye for now," I called over my shoulder.

"NO, PLEASE! DON'T LEAVE ME LIKE—"

The clang of the double doors cut off Nui's plea. I was about to lock them when I heard a creak behind me. Spinning around, I saw a familiar face peek through a doorway at the opposite end of the hallway.

"Ryuko-chan! There you are!" Mako said, running over to me.

"Mako!" I exclaimed, pressing my back against the doors. "W-what are you doing here?"

"I forgot school was closed today." Mako bopped herself on the head with a fist, sticking out her tongue. "I couldn't find you in our bedroom or the living room or the kitchen, so I went to look for you. What have you been doing, Ryuko-chan?"

"Uh ... nothing much. Just ... just taking a look at some of the rooms I hadn't checked out before."

"That sounds like fun! Can I take a look with you? I haven't seen much of the mansion either." She looked over my shoulder, at the gigantic doors behind me. "Ooh! What's in that room?"

"Uh ... we can visit some of the rooms later," I said. "Right now I want to eat." Forcing my mouth into a cheerful smile, I grabbed Mako's wrist and pulled her away from the double doors. "Come on, Mako! I'll make us something special for breakfast."

"But Ryuko-chan, you can't even cook."

"I've been wanting to learn," I lied, dragging Mako behind me. "Come on, let's find a recipe online."

* * *

 _Third-person POV:_

"So," Ryuko said nervously, "how does it taste?"

"P-pretty good," Mako replied, in a voice that would have made a polygraph machine explode.

Ryuko looked down at the dining room table, which was covered with an assortment of what might be charitably described as food.

"... Sorry I burned the rice."

"Oh, it's okay, Ryuko-chan! Now that it's burned, it looks more like brown rice, and brown rice is healthier, right?"

Ryuko sighed, resting her forehead in her hand. "Oh geez. I'm sorry, Mako. Come on, let's throw this disaster away and wash the dishes."

Once the dishes were dried and put away, Mako wanted to explore the mansion. Before Mako could say anything, however, Ryuko said she wanted to go shopping. In the end, they spent the whole day window-shopping. It seemed strange to Mako, since Ryuko didn't seem very interested in buying anything or even in looking at any of the things on sale. In the evening, they got dinner at a restaurant and then went to a movie theater.

By the time they got home, Ryuko and Mako were both exhausted. They pulled off their clothes and flopped into bed, mumbling "good night" to each other before falling asleep.

Mako slept for a few hours before her bladder woke her up. She slipped out of bed, being careful not to wake Ryuko, and headed for the nearest bathroom.

As Mako walked down the hallway, she remembered running into Ryuko in front of those giant double doors. Ryuko had looked nervous—guilty, even—when Mako had asked her about them.

By the time Mako stepped out of the bathroom, she couldn't get those doors out of her head. Why had Ryuko wanted so much to get her away from them? She didn't feel comfortable asking Ryuko, but she felt she would go crazy if she didn't find out what was in that room.

Mako headed back the way she had come, but instead of going back into Ryuko's bedroom, she tiptoed past it. She went downstairs, then headed for those mysterious doors, retracing her steps from memory.

Finally she reached her destination. One of the doors had a keyhole, but it creaked open when Mako pushed on it. Light spilled out into the hallway, accompanied by a faint buzzing sound. Mako knew that sound; she remembered it from the time she had spent as Nui's plaything. Her heart beat faster as she pushed the door farther open. She stepped into the room and then froze, staring in horror at the scene in front of her.

Nui's long yellow hair covered most of her tear-streaked face, but Mako recognized the Grand Couturier. Reddish threads bound Nui's wrists, holding them high above her head. A huge reddish-yellow shape hung from the ceiling, attached to the ceiling and walls by long strands of thread.

The Original Life Fiber.

"N-no way," Mako whispered.

Mako looked back down at Nui. After eighteen hours without a command from Ryuko, the Life Fiber strands around Nui's nipples and clitoris had mostly gone dormant, but they still vibrated intermittently, releasing the buzzing noise that Mako had heard.

"M-Mankanshoku?" Nui stammered. "Mankanshoku, is that you?"

Mako started backing away.

"No, wait! Don't leave me here! Please, I'm begging you, help me!"

Mako couldn't look any longer. She had to get out of that room. She had to get out of the mansion. She turned and ran, covering her ears to block out Nui's screams.


	14. Raging Waves

Chapter 14 – Raging Waves

 _Ryuko's POV:_

When I woke up, the sun was shining through the bedroom window. I rubbed my eyes and checked the wall clock. It was just past 8 AM.

I looked to my right, intending to wake Mako. But the right side of the bed, where Mako had collapsed the night before, was empty. After our late night out, I'd thought I would have to wake her up for school, but it looked like she had gotten up on her own.

As I sat up, my eyes happened to fall on an open closet. Mako's uniform hung from the rack, looking clean and crisp.

 _Oh, that's right,_ I thought. _Satsuki and Soroi got back from that business trip late yesterday. Soroi must have ironed her uniform._

I sighed. So Mako had gotten up on time for school, but she had forgotten to wear her uniform. Or had she not left for school yet?

"Mako?" I called as I swung my legs over the side of the bed. "Hey Mako, can you hear me? If you're still here, you're gonna be late for school!"

After showering and brushing my teeth, I headed downstairs. I passed my bedroom on the way and glanced inside. Mako's uniform still hung in the closet.

Since Satsuki was back home, I suspected there would be some breakfast laid out in the dining room. I wasn't disappointed. Satsuki's kitchen staff had prepared a full breakfast with fresh orange juice, sweet and meat pastries, and of course Satsuki's beloved tea. Satsuki sat at the head of the table, with Nonon Jakuzure in the closest seat to her right.

I sat down a few seats away from them and reached for a scone.

"Morning, slacker," Nonon said with a smirk. "Ready for another tough day of sofa-warming?"

"You're a comedic genius," I muttered. "I don't see you hurrying to school either, Pinky."

"I'm a busy professional now. You know Satsuki made me her secretary at REVOCS, right?"

"Yeah, I heard." I looked at Satsuki, who was lifting her teacup. "Hey Satsuki, why don't you give me a job too, huh? I'm your sister, aren't I?"

Satsuki took a sip, then set her cup down on its saucer.

"Nonon has proven administrative skills from her time on the Honnoji Academy Student Council and as the committee chair for the school's non-athletic clubs. She has also completed a college-level course on business administration over the past year. You, on the other hand, have no qualifications whatsoever—a situation you currently seem disinclined to ameliorate."

"What the hell does 'ameliorate' mean?"

"Thank you for proving my point. On a different note, Ryuko, I may need your help next week against some renegade COVERS in Indonesia."

"Yeah, sure," I said, leaning back in my chair. "I've been wanting to get out there and do some slashing again. By the way, did either of you see Mako this morning? You must've, Satsuki. You get up crazy early, don't you?"

"Actually, I haven't seen or heard her at all," Satsuki replied. "If she had left by the front door, then I would have seen her. I assumed she was staying home from school today."

"That's weird. I thought she left for school without her uniform, but I guess not. You're sure you would've seen her leave?"

"Yes. I was sitting in the library next to the entrance hall from 5:30 AM to 8 AM. I would have seen or at least heard her go by."

"That's so weird," I muttered.

I took my phone from my pocket and called Mako. Her phone rang a few times before going to voicemail. Frowning, I put my phone away. I was about to reach for another scone when I felt the phone vibrate—once, twice. I pulled it back out and checked my text messages.

 _Mako Mankanshoku: ryuko i need to ask u something_

 _Mako Mankanshoku: do u no about the room with nui harime_

The scone, which I had been lifting toward my mouth, fell onto the tablecloth. I excused myself quickly and headed for the hallway.

"Later, slacker," Nonon called after me.

Once outside the dining room, I set off down the hallway at a jogging pace. At last I screeched to a halt in front of the doorway leading to Nui and the Original Life Fiber.

The doors were open.

I hadn't locked them the day before, had I?

As I stared at the doors, my phone vibrated again. I could only watch, helpless, as another text arrived.

 _Mako Mankanshoku: please tell me do u no about it_

I stood there, looking down at my phone. What should I say? What would she think of me if I told her the truth? Satsuki knew what went on in that room, and she had never objected. And I didn't care what Nonon or Soroi thought of me. But Mako...

I turned and slammed my fist into the wall. "Fuck!"

I wanted to go back in time. All I wanted was to go back in time so I could lock the doors before Mako opened them.

I'm not sure how long I stood there, gripping my phone. The only thing that brought me back to the present was my ringtone.

 _Incoming call: Mako Mankanshoku_

I wasn't ready to talk to Mako. I had no idea what to say. But somehow I found myself tapping the screen and putting the phone to my ear.

"H-hey, Mako. Where are you?"

"Ryuko-chan ... did you get my texts?"

"... Yeah."

"... Well, um ... do you know about that room?"

There was no point in lying. "Yeah ... I know about it."

Mako was silent for a long moment. Just as I was starting to wonder if we had lost connection, she spoke.

"Wha ... what do you ... what do you do to her in there?"

I didn't answer.

"You ... hurt her, don't you?"

Suddenly I felt anger boiling inside me. "Mako, don't forget what she did to us! Don't forget how she killed your family in front of you!"

There was another long silence.

"I'm scared, Ryuko-chan. I didn't know you were doing something like this."

"Anyway, where are you right now?" I asked. "You know you forgot to wear your school uniform, right?"

"I'm not at school."

"Look, Mako, come back home, okay? Let's talk about this."

"I ... I need some time to think. I'm sorry, Ryuko-chan."

"Mako, wait! I—"

Mako had hung up. I tried calling her again, but she didn't answer.

I went back to my room and threw myself face-down onto my bed.

What was I going to do?

I stayed in my room until noon, coming out only for a glass of water. I tried to distract myself by watching videos on my laptop. Every few minutes I would glance at my phone to make sure I hadn't missed a call or text from Mako. I called her a few times, but I only got her voicemail.

At noon my phone rang. Within a second, I was sitting up in bed, holding the phone to my ear.

"Hello? Mako?"

"Ryuko-chan ... I have a question. ... How often do you torture Harime?"

I swallowed.

"Please, Ryuko-chan, I have to know."

"... Most days when you're at school, I guess."

Another long pause.

"You torture her almost every day?"

"You don't think that bitch deserves it?!"

"... How do you torture her?"

"The same ways she tortured us!" I shouted, then took a deep breath. "Please, Mako, come back home. I miss you."

"I can't..."

"Oh god, Mako, please don't do this. Where are you right now? Do you even have a place to spend the night?"

"I'm sorry, Ryuko-chan."

 _Call ended: Mako Mankanshoku_

As I sat, staring down at my phone, I felt my left hand curl into a fist. My right hand tightened around the phone, threatening to crush it.

 _Harime!_

First she had taken my father from me. Now she might have taken Mako from me too.

I hurled my phone across the room. Stepping into the hallway, I found myself face to face with Satsuki.

"There you are, Ryuko. I have some important news about the situation with the renegade COVERS. We may need to—"

"I'll talk about it later!" I snapped, pushing past her.

I headed straight to the room containing Nui and the Original Life Fiber. The doors were still wide open. I marched straight through. Nui had just enough time to open her eye before my foot slammed into her stomach.

"Fucking bitch!" I shouted.

Help upright by the threads around her wrists, she couldn't even double over. She just half-stood, half-hung there, her eye bulging in shock as she gasped for breath.

I told the Original Life Fiber to let go of Nui's wrists. Her legs folded under her, and she landed face-down on the floor. As she lay there, I pulled my foot back and kicked her hard in the ribs. She gasped in pain, then curled into a sobbing ball.

"Get the fuck up."

"Please, Ryuko-chan ... please ... I can't ..."

"I said _get up!_ " I shouted, kicking her harder.

Desperate to avoid more pain, she climbed shakily to her feet, gulping in air between sobs. As she rose, strands from the Original Life Fiber wove themselves into a huge, log-like tentacle.

Standing behind her, I grabbed a fistful of yellow hair and yanked her head back, pulling until she cried out in pain. I put my mouth to her ear.

"Look, Harime," I whispered. "Look how you're going to be messed up."

"No ... please ... it's too big ..."

Smirking, I gave the Original Life Fiber a silent command. Nui screamed.

 _Satsuki's POV:_

Lunch came and went with no sign of Ryuko. After the kitchen staff finished cleaning up, I sat at a small table in the corner of the kitchen, reading some company reports. Soroi brought a pot of fresh tea and a teacup.

At about 4 PM, Ryuko appeared. Her hair was even more unkempt than usual, and her clothes were stained with sweat. She walked to the refrigerator and yanked it open, scowling. I gestured for Soroi to leave.

"Ryuko, what was going on back there?"

"What are you talking about?" Ryuko muttered.

"Earlier today, I tried to talk to you about the renegade COVERS, and you walked right past me. Pushed past me, actually."

"Oh, for fuck's sake!" Ryuko growled, rifling through the refrigerator's contents. "Satsuki, this refrigerator is bigger than most people's bathrooms. Do you need to pack every single inch of it with ingredients for those fancy dishes you like? I always have to dig through a bunch of caviar and organic truffles and other weird shit just to find a soda. It pisses me off!"

"Ryuko, I can tell you're angry. Does this have something to do with Mako?"

Still holding the refrigerator door with one hand, Ryuko turned and glared at me.

"What, you want to know all about my personal life? Fine, I'll tell you! Mako saw the room where I keep Harime, and now she's run away and she says she's scared of me. There, are you satisfied?!"

"I never said I wanted to know all about your personal life, Ryuko," I said, trying to keep my voice level. "I just thought you might want to talk." I paused, then added, "For the record, though, I do think Mako has a point."

Ryuko swung around to face me. "So now you're on Harime's side too? You don't think she deserves it, after all she's done?!"

"This isn't about whether she deserves it, Ryuko. It's about you. Healthy minds don't spend all their time thinking about ways to torture people."

"Yeah?" Ryuko snarled. "What about you? Right before I arrived at Honnoji Academy, you had a student who stole a Goku uniform killed and hung up as a warning. You think that's something a healthy mind would do?!"

"That ... that was different," I said, though I heard myself stammer as I said it. "I needed to maintain an atmosphere of absolute discipline, both to mislead my mother and to train the—"

"Bullshit!" Ryuko stomped toward me, leaving the refrigerator open behind her. "You murdered a student for stealing some clothes and hung his dead body in front of the school. And you think _I'm_ wrong to give that monster a tiny taste of all the suffering she's caused?"

"For the last time, Ryuko, this isn't about Harime or what she deserves!"

"I bet you liked it, didn't you, watching your underlings murder that kid? I guess that much of your mother rubbed off on you."

My punch sent Ryuko reeling back into the refrigerator door. She hit the door and fell on her rear. The door swung open as far as it could go, then bounced back and hit her again, spilling containers onto the floor. A bundle of carrots landed on her head and slid off.

"Get out of this mansion," I said, my voice quivering. "Now."

"Fuck you!" Ryuko shouted, scrambling to her feet. "This is my house too!"

"No, it isn't. It's my house. I am the legal owner. And if you don't leave this instant, I'll have you thrown out."

"Go ahead and try!" Ryuko shouted, raising her fists.

Before Ryuko could react, I was in front of her. I punched her hard in the stomach, sent her head snapping back with an uppercut, and finished with a kick that propelled her into an overhead cabinet. She landed on the floor and lay still, too winded to even lift her head.

I turned to Soroi and the rest of the housekeepers, who had been watching from an open doorway. They shrank back as I looked at them.

"Soroi, get this woman off of my property."

"W-where should I take her, my lady?"

"Just drive her somewhere off the premises and leave her there. Don't worry; after the beating I just gave her, she won't be able to struggle for a while. She was a fool to fight me without Senketsu."

"Y-yes, my lady."

Soroi hoisted Ryuko's limp body onto his shoulder and left the kitchen. His receding footsteps echoed down the hallway, followed by the faint sound of the front door opening and closing. Meanwhile, a housekeeper rushed over to wipe up my spilled tea.

Sighing, I sank back into my chair and rested my forehead in my hand.


	15. My Sweet Home

Chapter 15 – My Sweet Home

 _Satsuki's POV:_

Nonon and I sat in the passenger section of my private jet, dressed for combat. Nonon had donned her Symphony Regalia uniform, while I wore Junketsu.

Nonon lounged in a plush white chair, fiddling with her baton and humming the tune of Beethoven's unfinished Piano Concerto No. 6. I sat at the conference table just behind the cockpit, poring over a report on the renegade COVERS.

It had been almost three days since I had kicked Ryuko out, and I hadn't heard from her since. Nonon and I were on our way to Belgium, following reports of a new colony of renegade COVERS, far bigger than any discovered before.

Information on the colonies was sparse, but the information we had was worrisome enough. The COVERS seemed to be exhibiting complex coordinated behavior. Their anatomy did include something like a central nervous system (made, of course, from Life Fibers), but it was far too rudimentary to explain such behavior, or so scientists thought, at least. It was almost as if the COVERS were being controlled by some higher intelligence.

"Where's the slacker been lately?" Nonon asked suddenly. "I haven't seen her around the mansion the last few days."

"I kicked her out," I said, without looking up from the report.

"Why? Did you two get in a fight?"

"You could say that, yes."

"So I guess that Mankanshoku girl's gone too?"

I shrugged. "I haven't seen her since Ryuko left."

Nonon fell silent for a moment. I flipped a page of the report.

"What about Harime? Is she still alive?"

"I think so," I said. "I haven't checked on her."

I hadn't even thought about Nui Harime since Ryuko's departure. By now, Harime hadn't eaten or drunk anything for three days or more. Although her Life Fibers no longer healed her automatically, I was fairly sure she could survive without food or water longer than a normal human being. Still, she had to be in pretty bad shape.

"So what are you gonna do with her?" Nonon asked. "Are you gonna kill her or what?"

"I don't know. I haven't thought about it."

"Can Ryuko still control the Original Life Fiber from wherever she is now?"

"No. She's trained the Original Life Fiber to obey her thoughts, but her connection with it weakens with distance. If she's outside the mansion, the connection should be virtually nil."

It was true. Despite nearly a year of research by the world's top scientists, no one knew how Ragyo had formed her unbreakable, distance-defying link with the Original Life Fiber.

"By now," I added, "the Original Life Fiber has gone days without orders from Ryuko. It should have reverted to a dormant state."

"So ... you aren't worried?"

I glanced up from the report. "Why would I be worried?"

"I thought the Original Life Fiber was keeping Harime tied up so Ryuko could do all that sick shit to her. You said it's dormant now. So what's stopping her from getting away?"

"The doors to the room containing Harime and the Original Life Fiber lock on both sides. Only Ryuko and I have the key. As long as the doors are locked, there's no ..."

My voice trailed off. I reached for a button on the side of the table.

"Yes, ma'am?" came the pilot's voice over the intercom.

"Take us back to the mansion."

"Ma'am?"

"Take us back to the mansion. Now. As fast as you can."

* * *

 _Third-person POV:_

Even after a year and a half, the slums of Honno Town looked the same. Mako took a familiar path along the dusty streets, between corrugated-iron roofs and claustrophobic apartments stacked like Tetris blocks. The stray cats that still eked out a living in the abandoned alleys glanced up and mewled at her as she passed by.

The whole city was a ghost town. Honnoji Academy was permanently closed now, and the compensation the students' families had received from Satsuki would allow them to buy new homes on the mainland. They had left Honno Town without looking back.

After leaving the mansion, Mako had had nowhere to go. She had no friends aside from Ryuko—none who were still alive, anyway. After some hesitation, she had taken up temporary residence in one of the abandoned Two-Star houses. The house had no water or electricity now, but canned food filled its pantries, and Mako had found bottled water at an abandoned mini-mart nearby.

At the moment, however, Mako was headed downhill, into the slums that composed Honno Town's lowest level. She carried a bouquet of roses taken from the rose bushes that grew in the Two-Star suburbs.

For two days since arriving in Honno Town, she had held back from visiting her family's house. But part of her needed to make the trip. The house was the closest thing to a tombstone that her parents and brother had. No one, not even Satsuki, knew what Ragyo had done with their bodies.

She reached the back alley where her family's house still sat, lodged between two decaying fences. The house looked just as she remembered it: a tiny, porchless shack patched with wood planks and nails and topped with a peeling sign that identified it as Dr. Mankanshoku's Back-Alley Clinic.

Blinking back her tears, Mako approached the house. She made it through the door and into the main room before she stopped. Her father's smile, the taste of her mother's croquettes, her brother's big mouth and phony swagger—all the memories came flooding back. She sank to her knees and sobbed. Her right hand pressed against the floor, crushing the roses under her weight, but she didn't care.

It was noon by the time she left, setting the roses in front of the door. As she stepped out of the back alley, she took her phone from her pocket. She stood for a few moments, staring down at Ryuko's name, before finally tapping it. The phone rang five times before going to voicemail.

Mako stood with her back to the alley, thinking. Either Ryuko was busy, or Ryuko wasn't picking up. Either way, if she really wanted to talk to Ryuko, a phone call wasn't the way to do it. The Kiryuin mansion wasn't exactly within walking distance of Honno Town, but she could make it there in an hour if she wanted to.

She thought about the torture chamber in the mansion. She worried she might never be able to look at Ryuko the same way again. She thought about how angry Ryuko might be with her.

But mostly she thought about how cold and lonely the Two-Star house would be that night.

Mako stuffed her phone into her pocket. Instead of heading back uphill to the Two-Star level, she turned in the opposite direction and set off toward the bridge leading from Honno Town to the mainland.

An hour later, Mako stood in front of the fence that surrounded the Kiryuin estate. She tried calling Ryuko one last time. Again the phone rang and rang and finally went to voicemail. She had tried calling five times while walking to the mansion and had left one message.

It seemed she would have to press the button next to the gate and ask one of the mansion's staff to let her in. That was how she had gotten into the mansion after school every day over the past year, but she felt uncomfortable doing it this time. She didn't want to barge in on Ryuko unannounced.

Mako was about to walk toward the gate when she heard a feeble voice.

"H-help me ..."

Mako nearly jumped out of her skin. The voice sounded like a sick ghost's. She looked down and to her left, where the voice had come from.

Nui Harime lay on the lawn on the other side of the gate, partly hidden by some immaculately-pruned bushes. Her long, unkempt hair covered most of her body, but Mako could see that she was naked and that her left foot was bent at an odd angle. It looked as if she had dragged herself to the gate on her stomach. Her one, desperate eye was fixed on Mako.

"P-please ..." she gasped, through a throat as dry as sawdust, "... help me..."


	16. Never Gonna Give You Up

Chapter 16 – Never Gonna Give You Up

 _Satsuki's POV:_

It was early afternoon by the time Nonon and I got back to the mansion. Once inside, I hurried down the mansion's twisting corridors with Nonon and Soroi close behind. At last we reached the giant double doors leading to the Original Life Fiber.

The doors were open, as I had feared. They must have been open or at least unlocked when I kicked Ryuko out. I had been a fool not to check them.

Our worst fear was confirmed as we approached the doorway. Nui was gone. The Life Fiber strands that had once held her still hung in the air, but the prisoner herself had vanished.

I turned to Soroi. "Tell the mansion's security team to search the grounds immediately. As of this moment, locating and containing Harime is our top priority. She should be in a significantly weakened state, but tell the team to exercise extreme caution if they encounter her."

"Yes, my lady."

As Soroi hurried back the way he had come, Nonon ventured farther into the secret room. She glanced with distaste at the box of sexual torture devices sitting in a corner, then turned her attention to the Original Life Fiber.

"Why haven't we gotten rid of that thing?" she asked. "Isn't it a threat to all humanity?"

"It's under the control of Shinra-Koketsu," I replied, "which used to be under Ryuko's control. Iori is doing research on it."

Nonon looked skeptical. "You said it used to be under Ryuko's control. Who's controlling it now?"

"Based on our current knowledge of Life Fibers, there shouldn't be anything to worry about. The Original Life Fiber has been conditioned to obey Shinra-Koketsu's wearer. Ryuko hasn't given it any commands since she left, so it should be in a dormant—"

Before either of us could react, a strand of yellow thread leaped downward from the Original Life Fiber and wrapped itself around Nonon's ankle. She let out a yelp as the thread yanked her into the air.

"Nonon!" I shouted.

"Satsuki-sama!" Nonon shrieked.

Looking up, I saw a yawning cavity open in the mass of pulsing thread. The Original Life Fiber was forming its whole body into a giant, amoeba-like mouth.

I looked desperately around the room, searching for something I could use. My mind darted to Shinra-Koketsu, which was still hanging in Ryuko's room, but I knew better than to try it on. No purely human body, not even mine, could control the power of the ultimate Kamui. I could only watch, helpless, as additional strands wound around Nonon's limbs, pulling her ever closer to the Original Life Fiber.

"Nooooooooooo!" Nonon shrieked as the mass of thread closed around her.

The Original Life Fiber returned to its original shape, pulsing quietly but more vigorously than before. I turned and ran from the room.

Half an hour later, I stood in the mansion's underground laboratory, watching Shiro Iori fiddle with some instruments in front of a huge rectangular screen. The screen displayed a diagram representing Nonon curled up inside the Original Life Fiber.

Aside from Nonon, Iori was the last surviving member of the Honnoji Academy Student Council. Inmuta and Sanageyama had died early on in the war against Ragyo. As for Gamagoori, Nonon told me that he had died during the raid on the mansion. I didn't know the details about the other former Student Council members.

Iori lived in the mansion now, devoting his time to Life Fiber research. Most of his research could not be published: it focused on the Original Life Fiber, whose continued existence I and a small circle had decided to keep secret.

"The Original Life Fiber is absorbing energy from Jakuzure," Iori said, eyeing the screen. "The attack seems to have been a reflexive reaction, triggered by the absence of a human energy source."

"The absence of a human energy source?" I said. "I thought it was using Hoomaru as an energy source."

Iori turned from the screen and looked at me. "Satsuki-sama, Hoomaru is no longer inside the Original Life Fiber."

* * *

 _Third-person POV:_

Nui whimpered in pain as Mako lowered her onto the floor. They were inside an abandoned warehouse that had belonged to the Jakuzure Corporation before it went bankrupt. The warehouse didn't offer much in the way of comfort, but at least no one was likely to look for them there.

Mako had taken a risk by walking up to the mansion's gate. The staff had assumed that she was visiting Ryuko and had buzzed her in without any questions. At first she had doubted that she would be able to carry Nui, but the former Grand Couturier had turned out to be surprisingly light.

"Please ..." Nui gasped, "... water ..."

Mako took out a small bottle she had brought from Honno Town. Lifting Nui's head, she poured the remaining water between Nui's cracked lips. Nui swallowed, coughed a few times, and then rested her head against the floor with a look of relief.

Mako knew they would need to get more water soon, but first she took a look at Nui's foot, which was still twisted at an unnatural angle. The ankle was purple and swelling. She tried to remember how her father had treated that kind of problem.

"I'll be back. I need to buy some things," she said, standing up. She hoped Ryuko and Satsuki hadn't canceled her credit card.

Mako approached the warehouse door, then stopped and looked back.

"Don't get the wrong idea," she said. "This doesn't mean I've forgiven you."

Mako glared at Nui for a few moments, then turned and walked out the door.

* * *

 _Hoomaru's POV:_

The sun had just started sinking below Honno Town's skyline when I collapsed into bed. After sitting motionless inside the Original Life Fiber for a year, walking around for half a day was enough to exhaust me.

I was mildly surprised that I could still walk at all. Then again, it was a confirmed fact that humans imprisoned inside Life Fibers did not lose muscle mass or motor skills as long as the humans had an external source of energy. My energy had come from an IV tube that Satsuki and Iori had stuck in me before feeding me to the Original Life Fiber.

It had taken hours to get from the Kiryuin mansion to Honno Town, thanks to the route I had chosen. Using the main roads had been out of the question, since I was both naked and easily recognizable as REVOCS' former secretary.

I had chosen a house in the Two-Star suburbs as my temporary residence. For nourishment, I had taken some bottled drinks from an abandoned store nearby. Only liquid for now—I knew better than to try solid food immediately after a year-long fast. So far, my digestive system seemed to be accepting what I put in it, much to my relief.

I lay back on the Two-Star bed, releasing a sigh. I closed my eyes and imagined that it was Ragyo's bed. I slowly ran my hands down my bare body, over my breasts, my stomach, my thighs. I imagined that they were Ragyo's hands caressing me.

I imagined her body: her strong, beautiful face; her large breasts sitting high and firm on her chest; her full, round ass. I could feel wetness building in my groin, and I was sure my nipples were rock-hard.

I slid my hand to my crotch and rubbed circles around my clit, moaning at the sensation. The middle finger of my other hand penetrated my cunt. I spread my legs and imagined that Ragyo was kneeling between them, playing with my pussy and clit. I imagined her whispering filthy things as she touched me.

 _You're so wet. How long have you been waiting for this, you little slut?_

My back arched as my fingers started moving faster. Oh fuck, it felt so good. During all those months I had spent inside the Original Life Fiber, I hadn't been able to touch myself like this, and it felt amazing to finally do it again. My cunt was making wet, squishy sounds. My hips jerked and bucked frantically as I fucked myself.

 _Look at you, thrusting your hips like that. I bet you're going to cum all over my fingers, aren't you?_

I rolled onto my stomach, pressing my thighs together, and started to grind my clit against the heel of my hand. I was so close to making myself cum. I imagined Ragyo standing over me, smirking as I masturbated shamelessly in front of her.

"Oh, Ragyo-sama!" I moaned, writhing against my hand.

I came hard, groaning and shuddering. When I had recovered enough to move, I pulled my hand out from under my body and slid my fingers into my mouth, pretending I was sucking Ragyo's juice off of them.

As my arousal faded, I felt a pang of grief.

 _Ragyo-sama._

I had heard her voice while curled up inside the Original Life Fiber. At first I had thought I was hearing things, but her voice came again and again, whispering to me that she was still alive.

Ragyo's body was dead, but her consciousness survived, coursing through all the Life Fibers on the planet. She had bound her soul to them, and it would remain in this world as long as they did.

All was not lost. The Life Fibers had created a body for Nui; they could also create a new body for Ragyo. Over the past year, Ragyo had been struggling to guide the surviving COVERS toward that goal. It had been tedious and often hopeless work. While inside the Original Life Fiber, I had felt her helplessness and desperation, and it had broken my heart.

"I'll bring you back, Ragyo-sama," I whispered before drifting off to sleep. "I promise."


End file.
